^tanbarti  Eifirarp  €t!itton 
THE  MISCELLANEOUS  WRITINGS 

OF 

JOHN   FISKE 

WITH    MANY    PORTRAITS    OF    ILLUSTRIOUS 

PHILOSOPHERS,  SCIENTISTS,  AND 

OTHER    MEN    OF    NOTE 

IN  TWELVE  VOLUMES 

VOLUME  XII 


I 


CIVIL    GOVERNMENT 

IN   THE   UNITED  STATES 

CONSIDERED  WITH  SOME   REFERENCE 
TO  ITS  ORIGINS 


BY 

JOHN   FISKE 

AiVcrOfUtu,  jrai  Ziji/bs  'EAevflepi'ov, 

'IlxepOLV  evpvaOeve'  ofi<^i7roAei,  2<i>TCtpa  Tv^o' 

tXv  yap  ev  novrif  KV^pviovTat.  flooi 

vacs,  ef  ^zpfT^  T€  Aaii/njpot  ttoAc/jloi 

Kayopac  /SovAo^opOi. 

Pindar,  Olymp.,  xii. 

Thou,  too,  sail  on,  O  Ship  of  State  ! 
Sail  on,  O  Union,  strong  and  great !   .    .   . 
Our  hearts,  our  hopes,  are  all  with  thee. 
Our  hearts,  our  hopes,  our  prayers,  our  tears, 
Our  faith  triumphant  o'er  our  fears. 
Are  all  with  thee,  —  are  all  with  thee  ! 
Longfellow 


BOSTON  AND  NEW  YORK 

HOUGHTON,  MIFFLIN  AND  COMPANY 

dlie  BiberjSitic  prejS)*,  Cambtitige 

1902 


COPYRIGHT    1890  BY  JOHN  FISKE 

COPYRIGHT    1902    BY   HOUGHTON,    MIFFLIN   &   CO. 

ALL   RIGHTS  RESERVED 


SDeUtcation 


THIS   LITTLE   BOOK    IS    DEDICATED,  WITH   THE   AUTHOR* S   BEST 
WISHES  AND    SINCERE    REGARD,    TO  THE    MANY   HUNDREDS 
OF   YOUNG    FRIENDS     WHOM    HE    HAS    FOUND    IT    SO 
PLEASANT  TO   MEET    IN    YEARS   PAST,   AND  ALSO 
TO  THOSE  WHOM    HE  LOOKS  FORWARD  TO 
MEETING     IN     YEARS     TO     COME,     IN 
STUDIES     AND     READINGS     UPON 
.THE      RICH     AND     FRUITFUL 
HISTORY    OF    OUR     BE- 
LOVED   COUNTRY 


PREFACE 

SOME  time  ago,  my  friends,  Messrs. 
Houghton,  Mifflin  &  Co.,  requested  me 
to  write  a  small  book  on  Civil  Govern- 
ment in  the  United  States,  which  might  be 
useful  as  a  text-book,  and  at  the  same  time 
serviceable  and  suggestive  to  the  general  reader 
interested  in  American  history.  In  preparing 
the  book  certain  points  have  been  kept  espe- 
cially in  view,  and  deserve  some  mention  here. 
It  seemed  desirable  to  adopt  a  historical 
method  of  exposition,  not  simply  describing  our 
political  institutions  in  their  present  shape,  but 
pointing  out  their  origin,  indicating  some  of 
the  processes  through  which  they  have  acquired 
that  present  shape,  and  thus  keeping  before  the 
student's  mind  the  fact  that  government  is 
perpetually  undergoing  modifications  in  adapt- 
ing itself  to  new  conditions.  Inasmuch  as  such 
gradual  changes  in  government  do  not  make 
themselves,  but  are  made  by  men  —  and  made 
either  for  better  or  for  worse  —  it  is  obvious 
that  the  history  of  political  institutions  has  seri- 
ous lessons  to  teach  us.  The  student  should  as 
vii 


PREFACE 

soon  as  possible  come  to  understand  that  every 
institution  is  the  outgrowth  of  experiences.  One 
probably  gets  but  little  benefit  from  abstract 
definitions  and  axioms  concerning  the  rights  of 
men  and  the  nature  of  civil  society,  such  as  we 
often  find  at  the  beginning  of  books  on  gov- 
ernment. Metaphysical  generalizations  are  well 
enough  in  their  place,  but  to  start  with  such 
things  —  as  the  French  philosophers  of  the 
eighteenth  century  were  fond  of  doing  —  is  to 
get  the  cart  before  the  horse.  It  is  better  to 
have  our  story  first,  and  thus  find  out  what 
government  in  its  concrete  reality  has  been,  and 
is.  Then  we  may  finish  up  with  the  metaphysics, 
or  do  as  I  have  done  —  leave  it  for  somebody 
else. 

I  was  advised  to  avoid  the  extremely  syste- 
matic, intrusively  symmetrical  style  of  exposi- 
tion, which  is  sometimes  deemed  indispensable 
in  a  book  of  this  sort.  It  was  thought  that 
students  would  be  more  likely  to  become  inter- 
ested in  the  subject  if  it  were  treated  in  the  same 
informal  manner  into  which  one  naturally  falls 
in  giving  lectures  to  young  people.  I  have  en- 
deavoured to  bear  this  in  mind  without  sacri- 
ficing that  lucidity  in  the  arrangement  of  topics 
which  is  always  the  supreme  consideration.  For 
many  years  I  have  been  in  the  habit  of  lectur- 
viii 


PREFACE 

ing  on  history  to  college  students  in  different 
parts  of  the  United  States,  to  young  ladies  in 
private  schools,  and  occasionally  to  the  pupils 
in  high  and  normal  schools,  and  in  writing  this 
little  book  I  have  imagined  an  audience  of  these 
earnest  and  intelligent  young  friends  gathered 
before  me. 

I  was  especially  advised  —  by  my  friend  Mr. 
James  MacAlister,  superintendent  of  schools 
in  Philadelphia,  for  whose  judgment  I  have  the 
highest  respect  —  to  make  it  a  little  book,  less 
than  three  hundred  pages  in  length,  if  possible. 
Teachers  and  pupils  do  not  have  time  enough 
to  deal  properly  with  large  treatises.  Brevity, 
therefore,  is  golden.  A  concise  manual  is  the 
desideratum,  touching  lightly  upon  the  vari- 
ous points,  bringing  out  their  relationships 
distinctly,  and  referring  to  more  elaborate  trea- 
tises, monographs,  and  documents,  for  the  use 
of  those  who  wish  to  pursue  the  study  at  greater 
length. 

Within  limits  thus  restricted,  it  will  probably 
seem  strange  to  some  that  so  much  space  is 
given  to  the  treatment  of  local  institutions,  — 
comprising  the  governments  of  town,  county, 
and  city.  It  may  be  observed,  by  the  way,  that 
some  persons  apparently  conceive  of  the  state 
also  as  a  "  local  institution."    In  a  recent  re- 

ix 


PREFACE 

view  of  Professor  Howard's  admirable  "  Local 
Constitutional  History  of  the  United  States," 
we  read,  "The  first  volume,  which  is  all  that  is 
yet  published,  treats  of  the  development  of  the 
township,  hundred,  and  shire  ;  the  second  vol- 
ume, we  suppose,  being  designed  to  treat  of 
the  State  Constitutions."  The  reviewer  forgets 
that  there  is  such  a  subject  as  the  "  development 
of  the  city  and  local  magistracies  "  (which  is  to 
be  the  subject  of  that  second  volume),  and  lets 
us  see  that  in  his  apprehension  the  American 
state  is  an  institution  of  the  same  order  as  the 
town  and  county.  We  can  thus  readily  assent 
when  we  are  told  that  "  many  youth  have  grown 
to  manhood  with  so  little  appreciation  of  the 
political  importance  of  the  state  as  to  believe  it 
nothing  more  than  a  geographical  division."  ^ 
In  its  historic  genesis,  the  American  state  is  not 
an  institution  of  the  same  order  as  the  town  and 
county,  nor  has  it  as  yet  become  depressed  or 
"  mediatized  "  to  that  degree.  .  The  state,  while 
it  does  not  possess  such  attributes  of  sovereignty 
as  were  by  our  Federal  Constitution  granted  to 
the  United  States,  does,  nevertheless,  possess 
many  very  important  and  essential  characteris- 
tics of  a  sovereign  body.  The  study  of  our 
state  governments  is  inextricably  wrapped  up 
^  Young's  Government  Class  Book,  p.  iv. 
X 


PREFACE 

with  the  study  of  our  national  government,  in 
such  wise  that  both  are  parts  of  one  subject, 
which  cannot  be  understood  unless  both  parts 
are  studied.  Whether  in  the  course  of  our 
country's  future  development  we  shall  ever 
arrive  at  a  stage  in  which  this  is  not  the  case, 
must  be  left  for  future  events  to  determine. 
But,  if  we  ever  do  arrive  at  such  a  stage, 
"  American  institutions "  will  present  a  very 
different  aspect  from  those  with  which  we  are 
now  familiar,  and  which  we  have  always  been 
accustomed  (even,  perhaps,  without  always  un- 
derstanding them)  to  admire. 

The  study  of  local  government  properly  in- 
cludes town,  county,  and  city.  To  this  part  of 
the  subject  I  have  devoted  about  half  of  my 
limited  space,  quite  unheedful  of  the  warning 
which  I  find  in  the  preface  of  a  certain  popular 
text-book,  that  "  to  learn  the  duties  of  town, 
city,  and  county  officers,  has  nothing  whatever 
to  do  with  the  grand  and  noble  subject  of  Civil 
Government,"  and  that  "  to  attempt  class  drill 
on  petty  town  and  county  offices,  would  be 
simply  burlesque  of  the  whole  subject."  But, 
suppose  one  were  to  say,  with  an  air  of  ineffable 
scorn,  that  petty  experiments  on  terrestrial 
gravitation  and  radiant  heat,  such  as  can  be 
made  with  commonplace  pendulums  and  tea- 
xi 


PREFACE 

kettles,  have  nothing  whatever  to  do  with  the 
grand  and  noble  subject  of  Physical  Astronomy  ! 
Science  would  not  have  got  very  far  on  that 
plan,  I  fancy.  The  truth  is,  that  science,  while 
it  is  perpetually  dealing  with  questions  of  mag- 
nitude, and  knows  very  well  what  is  large  and 
what  is  small,  knows  nothing  whatever  of  any 
such  distinction  as  that  between  things  that  are 
"grand"  and  things  that  are  "petty."  When 
we  try  to  study  things  in  a  scientific  spirit,  to 
learn  their  modes  of  genesis  and  their  present 
aspects,  in  order  that  we  may  foresee  their  ten- 
dencies, and  make  our  volitions  count  for  some- 
thing in  modifying  them,  there  is  nothing  which 
we  may  safely  disregard  as  trivial.  This  is  true 
of  whatever  we  can  study  ;  it  is  eminently  true 
of  the  history  of  institutions.  Government  is 
not  a  royal  mystery,  to  be  shut  off,  like  old 
Deiokes,^  by  a  sevenfold  wall  from  the  ordinary 
business  of  life.  Questions  of  civil  government 
are  practical  business  questions,  the  principles 
of  which  are  as  often  and  as  forcibly  illustrated 
in  a  city  council  or  a  county  board  of  super- 
visors, as  in  the  House  of  Representatives  at 
Washington.  It  is  partly  because  too  many  of 
our  citizens  fail  to  realize  that  local  government 
is  a  worthy  study,  that  we  find  it  making  so 
^  Herodotus,  i.  98. 

xii 


PREFACE 

much  trouble  for  us.  The  "  bummers "  and 
"  boodlers "  do  not  find  the  subject  beneath 
their  notice ;  the  Master  who  inspires  them  is 
wide  awake  and  —  for  a  creature  that  divides 
the  hoof —  extremely  intelligent. 

It  is,  moreover,  the  mental  training  gained 
through  contact  with  local  government  that 
enables  the  people  of  a  community  to  conduct 
successfully,  through  their  representatives,  the 
government  of  the  state  and  the  nation.  And  so 
it  makes  a  great  deal  of  difference  whether  the 
government  of  a  town  or  county  is  of  one  sort  or 
another.  If  the  average  character  of  our  local 
governments  for  the  past  quarter  of  a  century 
had  been  quite  as  high  as  that  of  the  Boston 
town-meeting  or  the  Virginia  boards  of  county 
magistrates,  in  the  days  of  Samuel  Adams  and 
Patrick  Henry,  who  can  doubt  that  many  an 
airy  demagogue,  who  through  session  after  ses- 
sion has  played  his  pranks  at  the  national  cap- 
ital, would  long  ago  have  been  abruptly  recalled 
to  his  native  heath,  a  sadder  if  not  a  wiser  man  ? 
We  cannot  expect  the  nature  of  the  aggregate 
to  be  much  better  than  the  average  natures  of  its 
units.  One  may  hear  people  gravely  discussing 
the  difference  between  Frenchmen  and  English- 
men in  political  efficiency,  and  resorting  to  as- 
sumed ethnological  causes  to  explain  it,  when, 
xiii 


PREFACE 

very  likely,  to  save  their  lives  they  could  not 
describe  the  difference  between  a  French  com- 
mune and  an  English  parish.  To  comprehend 
the  interesting  contrasts  between  Gambetta  in 
the  Chamber  of  Deputies,  and  Gladstone  in  the 
House  of  Commons,  one  should  begin  with 
a  historical  inquiry  into  the  causes,  operating 
through  forty  generations,  which  have  frittered 
away  self-government  in  the  rural  districts  and 
small  towns  of  France,  until  there  is  very  little 
left.  If  things  in  America  ever  come  to  such  a 
pass  that  the  city  council  of  Cambridge  must 
ask  Congress  each  year  how  much  money  it  can 
be  allowed  to  spend  for  municipal  purposes, 
while  the  mayor  of  Cambridge  holds  his  office 
subject  to  removal  by  the  President  of  the 
United  States,  we  may  safely  predict  further 
extensive  changes  in  the  character  of  the  Ameri- 
can people  and  their  government.  It  was  not  for 
nothing  that  our  profoundest  political  thinker, 
Thomas  Jefferson,  attached  so  much  impor- 
tance to  the  study  of  the  township. 

In  determining  the  order  of  exposition,  I 
have  placed  local  government  first,  beginning 
with  the  township  as  the  simplest  unit.  It  is 
well  to  try  to  understand  what  is  near  and 
simple,  before  dealing  with  what  is  remote  and 
complex.  In  teaching  geography  with  maps,  it 
xiv 


PREFACE 

is  wise  to  get  the  pupil  interested  in  the  streets 
of  his  own  town,  the  country  roads  running  out 
of  it,  and  the  neighbouring  hills  and  streams, 
before  burdening  his  attention  with  the  topo- 
graphical details  of  Borrioboola  Gha.  To  study 
grand  generalizations  about  government,  before 
attending  to  such  of  its  features  as  come  most 
directly  before  us,  is  to  run  the  risk  of  achieving 
a  result  like  that  attained  by  the  New  Hamp- 
shire school-boy,  who  had  studied  geology  in  a 
text-book,  but  was  not  aware  that  he  had  ever 
set  eyes  upon  an  igneous  rock. 

After  the  township  naturally  comes  the 
county.  The  city,  as  is  here  shown,  is  not  sim- 
ply a  larger  town,  but  is  much  more  complex 
in  organization.  Historically,  many  cities  have 
been,  or  still  are,  equivalent  to  counties ;  and 
the  development  of  the  county  must  be  studied 
before  we  can  understand  that  of  the  city.  It 
has  been  briefly  indicated  how  these  forms  of 
local  government  grew  up  in  England,  and  how 
they  have  become  variously  modified  in  adapt- 
ing themselves  to  different  social  conditions  in 
different  parts  of  the  United  States. 

Next  in  order  come  the  general  governments, 
those  which  possess  and  exert,  in  one  way  or 
another,  attributes  of  sovereignty.  First,  the 
various  colonial  governments  have  been  con- 

XV 


PREFACE 

sidered,  and  some  features  of  their  metamorpho- 
sis into  our  modern  state  governments  have 
been  described.  In  the  course  of  this  study, 
our  attention  is  called  to  the  most  original  and 
striking  feature  of  the  development  of  civil  gov- 
ernment upon  American  soil,  —  the  written  con- 
stitution, with  the  accompanying  power  of  the 
courts  in  certain  cases  to  annul  the  acts  of  the 
legislature.  This  is  not  only  the  most  original 
feature  of  our  government,  but  it  is  in  some 
respects  the  most  important.  Without  the  Su- 
preme Court,  it  is  not  likely  that  the  Federal 
Union  could  have  been  held  together,  since 
Congress  has  now  and  then  passed  an  act  which 
the  people  in  some  of  the  states  have  regarded 
as  unconstitutional  and  tyrannical ;  and  in  the 
absence  of  a  judicial  method  of  settling  such 
questions,  the  only  available  remedy  would  have 
been  nullification.  I  have  devoted  a  brief  chap- 
ter to  the  origin  and  development  of  written 
constitutions,  and  the  connection  of  our  colo- 
nial charters  therewith. 

Lastly,  we  come  to  the  completed  structure, 
the  Federal  Union ;  and  by  this  time  we  have 
examined  so  many  points  in  the  general  theory 
of  American  government,  that  our  Federal  Con- 
stitution can  be  more  concisely  described,  and 
(I  believe)  more  quickly  understood,  than  if  we 
xvi 


PREFACE 

had  made  it  the  subject  of  the  first  chapter  in- 
stead of  the  last.  In  conclusion,  there  have 
been  added  a  few  brief  hints  and  suggestions 
with  reference  to  our  political  history.  These 
remarks  have  been  intentionally  limited.  It  is 
no  part  of  the  purpose  of  this  book  to  give  an 
account  of  the  doings  of  political  parties  under 
the  Constitution.  But  its  study  may  fitly  be 
supplemented  by  that  of  Professor  Alexander 
Johnston's  "History  of  American  Politics." 

This  arrangement  not  only  proceeds  from  the 
simpler  forms  of  government  to  the  more  com- 
plex, but  it  follows  the  historical  order  of  de- 
velopment. From  time  immemorial,  and  down 
into  the  lowest  strata  of  savagery  that  have 
come  within  our  ken,  there  have  been  clans  and 
tribes ;  and,  as  is  here  shown,  a  township  was 
originally  a  stationary  clan,  and  a  county  was 
originally  a  stationary  tribe.  There  were  town- 
ships and  counties  (or  equivalent  forms  of  or- 
ganization) before  there  were  cities.  In  like 
manner  there  were  townships,  counties,  and 
cities  long  before  there  was  anything  in  the 
world  that  could  properly  be  called  a  state.  I 
have  remarked  below  upon  the  way  in  which 
English  shires  coalesced  into  little  states,  and 
in  course  of  time  the  English  nation  was  formed 
by  the  union  of  such  little  states,  which  lost 
xvii 


PREFACE 

their  statehood  (i.  e.,  their  functions  of  sover- 
eignty, though  not  their  self-government  within 
certain  hmits)  in  the  process.  Finally,  in  Amer- 
ica, we  see  an  enormous  nationality  formed  by 
the  federation  of  states  which  partially  retain 
their  statehood ;  and  some  of  these  states  are 
themselves  of  national  dimensions,  as,  for  ex- 
ample, New  York,  which  is  nearly  equal  in  area, 
quite  equal  in  population,  and  far  superior  in 
wealth,  to  Shakespeare's  England. 

In  studying  the  local  institutions  of  our  dif- 
ferent states,  I  have  been  greatly  helped  by  the 
Johns  Hopkins  University  Studies  in  History 
and  Politics,  of  which  the  eighth  annual  series 
is  now  in  course  of  publication.  In  the  course 
of  the  pages  below  I  have  frequent  occasion  to 
acknowledge  my  indebtedness  to  these  learned 
and  sometimes  profoundly  suggestive  mono- 
graphs ;  but  I  cannot  leave  the  subject  without 
a  special  word  of  gratitude  to  my  friend,  Dr. 
Herbert  Adams,  the  editor  of  the  series,  for  the 
noble  work  which  he  is  doing  in  promoting  the 
study  of  American  history.^ 

The  book  is  designed  to  be  suggestive  and 
stimulating,  to  leave  the  reader  with  scant  in- 

1    [A  few  paragraphs,  written  for  the  guidance  of  teachers 
in  their  class-room  work,  are  omitted  in  the  present  edition.] 
xviii 


PREFACE 

formation  on  some  points,  to  make  him  (as  Mr. 
Samuel  Weller  says)  "vish  there  wos  more," 
and  to  show  him  how  to  go  on  by  himself.  I 
am  well  aware  that,  in  making  an  experiment  in 
this  somewhat  new  direction,  nothing  is  easier 
than  to  fall  into  errors  of  judgment.  I  can 
hardly  suppose  that  this  book  is  free  from  such 
errors ;  but  if  in  spite  thereof  it  shall  turn  out 
to  be  in  any  way  helpful  in  bringing  the  know- 
ledge and  use  of  the  German  seminary  method 
into  our  higher  schools,  I  shall  be  more  than 
satisfied. 

Just  here,  let  me  say  to  young  people  in  all 
parts  of  our  country  :  If  you  have  not  already 
done  so,  it  would  be  well  worth  while  for  you 
to  organize  a  debating  society  in  your  town  or 
village,  for  the  discussion  of  such  historical  and 
practical  questions  relating  to  the  government 
of  the  United  States  as  are  suggested  in  the 
course  of  this  book.  Once  started,  there  need 
be  no  end  of  interesting  and  profitable  subjects 
for  discussion.  As  a  further  guide  to  the  books 
you  need  in  studying  such  subjects,  use  Mr. 
W.  E.  Foster's  "  References  to  the  Constitution 
of  the  United  States."  If  you  cannot  afford  to 
buy  the  books,  get  the  public  library  of  your 
town  or  village  to  buy  them  ;  or,  perhaps,  or- 
ganize a  small  special  library  for  your  society 

xix 


PREFACE 

or  club.  Librarians  will  naturally  feel  interested 
in  such  a  matter,  and  will  often  be  able  to  help 
with  advice.  A  few  hours  every  week  spent  in 
such  wholesome  studies  cannot  fail  to  do  much 
toward  the  political  education  of  the  local  com- 
munity, and  thus  toward  the  general  improve- 
ment of  the  American  people.  For  the  ame- 
lioration of  things  will  doubtless  continue  to  be 
effected  in  the  future,  as  it  has  been  effected  in 
the  past,  not  by  ambitious  schemes  of  sudden 
and  universal  reform  (which  the  sagacious  man 
always  suspects,  just  as  he  suspects  all  schemes 
for  returning  a  fabulously  large  interest  upon 
investments),  but  by  the  gradual  and  cumula- 
tive efforts  of  innumerable  individuals,  each 
doing  something  to  help  or  instruct  those  to 
whom  his  influence  extends.  He  who  makes 
two  clear  ideas  grow  where  there  was  only  one 
hazy  one  before,  is  the  true  benefactor  of  his 
species. 

In  conclusion,  I  must  express  my  sincere 
thanks  to  Mr.  Thomas  Emerson,  superinten- 
dent of  schools  in  Newton,  for  the  very  kind 
interest  he  has  shown  in  my  work,  in  discussing 
its  plan  with  me  at  the  outset,  in  reading  the 
completed  manuscript,  and  in  offering  valuable 
criticisms. 

Cambridge,  August  5,  1890- 


NOTE 

The  text  of  this  book  was  carefully  revised 
by  Mr.  Fiske  for  successive  editions,  the  last 
revision  being  dated  April  i6,  1901. 

4  Park  Street,  Boston. 


CONTENTS 


TAXATION    AND    GOVERNMENT 

PAGE 

*' Too  much  taxes "  .  .  .  .  .  .1,2 

What  is  taxation  ?......  3 

Taxation  and  eminent  domain         .  .  .  .      4,  5 

What  is  government  ?,....  6 

The  *' ship  of  state  " 7 

**  The  government "        .....  8 

Whatever  else  it  may  be,  "the  government"  is  the 

power  w^hich  imposes  taxes         ....  8 

Difference  between  taxation  and  robbery      .  .  10 

Sometimes  taxation  is  robbery  .  .  .  .11 

The  study  of  history  is  full   of  practical    lessons,  and 

helpful  to  those  who  would  be  good  citizens  .  12,  13 
Eternal  vigilance  is  the  price  of  liberty      .  .  .14 

II 

THE    TOWNSHIP 

§  I.    The  New  England  Township 

The  most  ancient  and  simple  form  of  government  .  1 5 

New  England  settled  by  church  congregations  .  .        15 
Policy  of  the  early  Massachusetts  government  as  to  land 

grants        .......  17 

Smallness  of  the  farms            .          .          .          .  .17 

Township  and  village       .....  18 

Social  position  of  the  settlers  .          .          .          .  .19 

xxiil 


CONTENTS 

The  town-meeting  .  .  .  .  .  19 

Selectmen;   town-clerk  ....  20,  21 

Town-treasurer  ;    constables ;    assessors   of  taxes   and 

overseers  of  the  poor    .  .  .  .  .21,22 

Act  of  1647  establishing  public  schools     .  .  .22 

School  committees  .  .  .  .  .  23 

Field-drivers  and  pound-keepers  ;  fence-viewers  ;  other 

town  officers  ......  24,  25 

Calling  the  town-meeting  ....  26 

Town,  county,  and  state  taxes        ....        26 

Poll-tax         .......  27 

Taxes  on  real-estate  ;  taxes  on  personal  property         .        28 
When  and  where  taxes  are  assessed  .  .  29,  30 

Tax-lists       .......  30 

Cheating  the  government       .  .  .  .  .31 

The  rate  of  taxation  .  .  .  .  .  31 

Undervaluation  ;  the  burden  of  taxation  .  .  32,  33 

The  *' magic-fund "  delusion    .  .  .  .       33j  34 

Educational  value  of  the  town-meering     ...        34 
By-laws         .......  35 

Power  and  responsibility         .  .  .  .  .36 

There  is  nothing  especially  American,  democratic,   or 

meritorious  about  "  rotation  in  office"     .  .  36 

§  2.    Origin  of  the  Township 
Town-meetings  in  ancient  Greece  and  Rome     .  .        37 

Clans  ;  the  mark  and  the  tun    .  .  .  •       38,  39 

The  Old- English  township,  the  manor,  and  the  parish  39,  40 
The  vestry-meeting      .  .  .  .  .  .41 

Parish  and  vestry  clerks  ;  beadles,  waywardens,  hay- 
wards,  common-drivers,  churchwardens,  etc.     .       41,  42 
Transition  from  the  English  parish  to  the  New  Eng- 
land township      .  .  .  .  .  .      42,  43 

Building  of  states  out  of  smaller  political  units     .  .        44 

Representation ;    shire-motes  ;    Earl    Simon's    Parlia- 
ment        .......       44,  45 

xxiv 


CONTENTS 

The  township  as  the  **unit  of  representation  "  in  the 

shire-mote  and  in  the  General  Court    ...        46 

Contrast  with  the  Russian  village-community  which  is 

not  represented  in  the  general  government  .       46-48 

III 

THE    COUNTY 

§  I .    The  County  in  its  Beginnings 
Why  do  we  have  counties  ?  .  .  .  .  .49 

Clans  and  tribes     ......  50 

The  English  nation,  like  the  American,  grew  out  of 

the  union  of  small  states    .  .  .  .  .51 

Ealdorman  and  sheriff;  shire-mote  and  county  court    52,  53 
The  coroner,  or  "crown  officer"      .  .  .       53>  54 

Justices  of  the  peace  ;  the  Quarter  Sessions  ;  the  lord 

lieutenant        .  .  .  .  .  .  55>  $6 

Decline  of  the  English  county  ;  beginnings  of  counties 

in  Massachusetts  .  .  .  .  .  56 

§  2.    The  Modern  County  in  Massachusetts 
County  commissioners,   etc.  ;  shire-towns  and  court- 
houses   .        .  .  .  .  .  .  57>  5^ 

Justices  of  the  peace,  and  trial  justices           .          .  58 

The  sheriff 59 

§  3.    The  Old  Virginia  County 
Virginia  sparsely  settled  ;  extensive  land  grants  to  in- 
dividuals .......  60 

Navigable  rivers  ;  absence  of  towns  ;  slavery     .  61,  62 

Social  position  of  the  settlers       .  .  .  .  62 

Virginia  parishes  ;  the  vestry  was  a  close  corporation  63 

Powers  of  the  vestry  .  .....  64 

The  county  was  the  unit  of  representation    .  .  65 

The  county  court  was  virtually  a  close  corporation      .  66 

XXV 


CONTENTS 

The  county-seat,  or  Court  House      ...  66 

Powers  of  the  court ;  the  sheriff     .  .  .  67,  68 

The  county-lieutenant      .....  69 

Contrast  between  old  Virginia  and  old  New  England, 

in  respect  of  local  government     ....        70 
Jefferson's  opinion  of  township  government  .  .  70 

*' Court-day "  in  old  Virgmia        .  .  .  .71 

Virginia  has  been  prolific  in  great  leaders      .  .       72,  73 

IV 

V 

TOWNSHIP    AND    COUNTY 

§  I .    Various  Local  Systems 
Parishes  in  South  Carolina     .....        74 

The  back  country  ;  the  "regulators  "  .  .  75 

The  district  system       .  .  .  .  .  76,  77 

The  modern  South  Carolina  county    .  .  .  77 

The  counties  are  too  large     .  .  .  .  .78 

Tendency  of  the  school  district  to  develop  into  some- 
thing like  a  township  .  .  .  .  .  78 

Local  institutions  in  colonial  Maryland  ;   the  hundred  79 

Clans  ;  brotherhoods,  or  phratries  ;  and  tribes  .  .        80 

Origin  of  the  hundred  ;  the  hundred  court ;  the  high 

constable  .......  81 

Decay  of  the   hundred  ;  hundred-meetings  in  Mary- 
land       81,82 

The  hundred  in  Delaware  ;  the  levy  court,  or  repre- 
sentative county  assembly      .  .  .  .  83 
The  old  Pennsylvania  county          ....        84 
Town-meetings  in  New  York  .          .          .          .              84 
The  county  board  of  supervisors     .          .          .          .85 

§  2.   Settlement  of  the  Public  Domain 
Westward  movement  of  population  along  parallels  of 

latitude 86 

xxvi 


CONTENTS 

Method  of  surveying  the  public  lands       .  .  .87 

Origin  of  townships  in  the  West         .  .  .       87,  88 

Formation  of  counties  in  the  West  ...        90 

Some  effects  of  this  system         .  .  .  .  92 

The  reservation  of  a  section  for  public  schools  .  .        92 

In  this  reservation  there  vv^ere  the  germs  of  township 

government        .  .  .  .  .  .  93 

But  at  first  the  county  system  prevailed    ...        94 

§  3.    The  Representative  Township- County  System  in 

the  West 
The  town-meeting  in  Michigan  .  .  .  95 

Conflict  between  township  and  county  systems  in  Illi- 
nois     ........        96 

Effects  of  the  Ordinance  of  1787        ...  97 

Intense  vitality  of  the  township  system     ...        98 
County    option    and    township    option    in     Missouri, 

Nebraska,  Minnesota,  and  Dakota  .  .  99 

Grades  of  township  government  in  the  West     .         99,  100 
An  excellent  result  of  the  absence  of  centralization  in 

the  United  States  .  .  .  .  .  loi 

Effect  of  the  self-governing  school  district  in  the  South, 
in  preparing  the  way  for  the  self-governing  town- 
ship     .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .102 

Woman-suffrage  in  the  school  district  .         .  103,  104 


THE    CITY 

§  I.    Direct  and  Indirect  Government 

Summary  of  the  foregoing  results  ;  township  govern- 
ment is  direct,  county  government  is  indirect         105,  106 

Representative  government  is  necessitated  in  a  county 
by  the  extent  of  territory,  and  in  a  city  by  the  mul- 
titude of  people        .....       106,  107 

xxvii 


CONTENTS 

Josiah  Quincy's  account  of  the  Boston  town-meeting 
in  1830    ....... 

Distinctions  between  towns  and  cities  in  America  and 
in  England     ......        109, 

§  2.    Origin  of  English  Boroughs  and  Cities 
Origin  of  the  chesters  and  casters  in  Roman  camps 
Coalescence  of  towns  into  fortified  boroughs 
The  borough  as  a  hundred  ;  it  acquires  a  court 
The  borough  as  a  county  ;  it  acquires  a  sheriff 
Government  of  London  under  Henry  I.  . 
The  guilds  ;  the  town  guild,  and  Guild  Hall 
Government  of  London  as  perfected  in  the  thirteenth 
century  ;  mayor,  aldermen,  and  common  council   . 
The  city  of  London,  and  the  metropolitan  district 
English  cities  were  for  a  long  time  the   bulwarks   of 
liberty  .  .  .  .  .  .  .117, 

Simon  de  Montfort  and  the  cities 
Oligarchical  abuses   in   English   cities,  beginning  with 
the  Tudor  period     ...... 

The  Municipal  Reform  Act  of  1835  . 
Government  of  the  city  of  New  York  before  the  Re- 
volution ......       120, 

Changes  after  the  Revolution     .... 

City  government  in  Philadelphia  in  the  eighteenth  cen- 
tury     .  .  .  •  .  .  .123, 
The  very  tradition  of  good  government  was  lacking  in 
these  cities           ...... 

§  3 .    The  Government  of  Cities  in  the  United  States 
Several  features  of  our  municipal  governments    . 
In  many  cases  they  do  not  seem  to  work  well  126— i 

Rapid  growth  of  American  cities 

Some  consequences  of  this  rapid  growth  .  .        130, 

Wastefulness  resulting  from  want  of  foresight 
Growth  in  complexity  of  government  in  cities  . 
xxviii 


CONTENTS 

Illustrated  by  list  of  municipal  officers  in  Boston  133,  134 
How  city  government  comes  to   be  a  mystery  to  the 

citizens,  in  some  respects  harder  to  understand  than 

state  and  national  government  .  .  .  135 

Dread  of  the  "one-man  power  "   has  in  many  cases 

led  to  scattering  and  weakening  of  responsibiHty  136,  137 
Committees    inefficient    for    executive    purposes ;    the 

"  Circumlocution  Office "  .  .  .  .138 

Alarming  increase  of  city  debts,  and  various  attempts 

to  remedy  the  evil        .  .  .  .  .  139 

Experience  of  New  York  with   state   interference  in 

municipal  affairs ;  unsatisfactory  results  .       140,  141 

The  Tweed  Ring  in  New  York  .  .  .  142 

The  present  is  a  period  of  experiments     .  .  .143 

The  new  government  of  Brooklyn        .  .  143,144 

Necessity  of  separating  municipal   from  national  poli- 
tics      .......       145,  146 

Notion  that  the  suiFrage  ought  to  be  restricted  ;  evils 

wrought  by  ignorant  voters         .  .  .  .147 

Evils   wrought  by  wealthy   speculators  ;  testimony  of 

the  Pennsylvania  Municipal  Commission  .  .  148 

Dangers  of  a  restricted  suffrage       .  .  .  .149 

Baneful  effects   of  mixing  city  politics  with   national 

politics      .......  150 

The  "spoils  system"    must  be  destroyed,  root  and 

branch  ;  ballot  reform  also  indispensable        .  .      151 

VI 

THE    STATE 

§  I .    The  Colonial  Governments 
Claims  of  Spain  to  the  possession  of  North  America  1 5  2 

Claims  of  France  and  England  .  .  .  .  152 

The  London  and  Plymouth  Companies  .  .  I53>  154 
Their  common  charter     .  .  .  .  154,  155 

xxix 


CONTENTS 

Dissolution  of  the  two  companies    .... 

States  formed  in  the  three  zones  .  .  156-I 

Formation  of  representative  governments  ;  House  of 
Burgesses  in  Virginia         ....       159, 

Company  of  Massachusetts  Bay 

Transfer  of  the  charter  from  England  to  Massachu- 
setts     .  .  .  .  .  .  .161, 

The  General  Court  ;  assistants  and  deputies 

Virtual  independence  of  Massachusetts,  and  quarrels 
with  the  Crown  ..... 

New  charter  of  Massachusetts  in  1692  ;  its  liberties 
curtailed    ....... 

Republican  governments  in  Connecticut  and  Rhode 
Island  ........ 

Counties  palatine  in  England  ;  proprietary  charter  of 
Maryland  .....  165- 

Proprietary  charter  of  Pennsylvania 

Quarrels  between  Penns  and  Calverts  ;  Mason  and 
Dixon's  line       ...... 

Other  proprietary  governments       .... 

They  generally  became  unpopular 

At  the  time  of  the  Revolution  there  were  three  forms 
of  colonial  government:  i.  Republican;  2.  Pro- 
prietary ;   3.    Royal  ..... 

(After  1692  the  government  of  Massachusetts  might 
be  described  as  Semi-royal)  ...  1 70, 

In  all  three  forms  there  was  a  representative  assembly, 
which  alone  could  impose  taxes 

The  governor's  council  was  a  kind  of  upper  house 

The  colonial  goverrmient  was  much  like  the  English 
system  in  miniature      ..... 

The  Americans  never  admitted  the  supremacy  of  Par- 
liament ....... 

Except  in  the  regulation  of  maritime  commerce 

In  England  there  grew  up  the  theory  of  the  imperial 
supremacy  of  Parliament   .  .  .  .  •175 

XXX 


CONTENTS 

And  the  conflict  between  the  British  and  American 
theories  was  precipitated  by  becoming  involved  in 
the  political  schemes  of  George  III.  .  176,  177 

§  2.    The  Transition  from  Colonial  to  State  Govern- 
ments 
Dissolution  of  assemblies  and  parliaments  .  .      177 

Committees  of  correspondence  ;  provincial  congresses        178 
Provisional  governments  ;   "governors"  and   "presi- 
dents"    ......  179,  180 

Origin  of  the  senates   .  .  .  .  .  .181 

Likenesses  and  differences  between  British  and  Ameri- 
can systems        .  .  .  .  .  ,  182 

§  3.    The  State  Governments 
Later  modifications  .  .  .  .  183,  184 

Universal  suffrage        .  .  .  .  .  .184 

Separation  between  legislative  and  executive  depart- 
ments ;  its  advantages  and  disadvantages  as  compared 
with  the  European  plan         .  .  .  185,  186 

In  our  system  the  independence  of  the  executive   is 

of  vital  importance  .  .  .  .  .       186,  187 

The  state  executive  .  .  .  .  187,188 

The  governor's  functions  :   1.   Adviser  of  legislature  ; 
2.   Commander  of  state  militia  ;   3.   Royal  preroga- 
tive of  pardon;  4.   Veto  power  .  .       189,  190 
Importance  of  the  veto  power  as  a  safeguard  against 

corruption  .  .  .  .  .  .  190 

In   building  the  state,  the   local   self-government  was 

left  unimpaired         .  .  .  .  .  .191 

Instructive  contrast  with  France  .  .  .  192 

Some  causes  of  French  political  incapacity  .       193,194 

Vastness  of  the  functions  retained  by  the  states  in  the 

American  Union  ....  *9S»  ^9^ 

Illustration  from  recent  English  history     .  .  .197 

Independence  of  the  state  courts  .  .  .  198 

xxxi 


CONTENTS 

Constitution  of  the  state  courts         .  .  .  .199 

Elective  and  appointive  judges  .  .  ,  200,201 

VII 

WRITTEN    CONSTITUTIONS 

In  the  American  state  there  is  a  power  above  the  legis- 
lature   ........      202 

Germs  of  the  idea  of  a  written  constitution  .  .  203 

Development  of  the  idea  of  contract  in  Roman  law  ; 

medieval  charters     .  .  .  .  .  .204 

The '*  Great  Charter "  (1215)         .  .  .  205 

The  *' Bill  of  Rights  (1689)"      .  .  .  .206 

Foreshadowing  of  the  American  idea   by  Sir  Harry 

Vane  (1656)     ......  207 

The  Mayflower  compact  (1620)  .  .  .       208,  209 

The  "  Fundamental  Orders  "  of  Connecticut  (1639)      2*-*9 
Germinal  development  of  the  colonial  charter  toward 

the  modern  state  constitution  .  .  2 1  o,  2 1 1 

Abnormal  development  of  some  recent  state  constitu- 
tions, encroaching  upon  the  legislature  .       211,212 
The  process  of  amending  constitutions           .  212,  213 
The  Swiss  *' Referendum "            .          .          .  ,214 

VIII 

THE    FEDERAL    UNION 

§  I .    Origin  of  the  Federal  Union 
Circumstances  favourable  to  the  union  of  the  colonies        215 
The  New  England  Confederacy  (1643-84)  216,  217 

Albany     Congress    (1754)  5     Stamp    Act     Congress 
(1765)  ;   Committees  of  Correspondence  (1772— 

75) 217,218 

The  Continental  Congress  (1774-89)      .        .  .219 

xxxii 


CONTENTS 

The  several  states  were  never  at   any  time  sovereign 

states         .  .  .  .  .  .  .  220 

The  Articles  of  Confederation         .  .  .  .220 

Nature  and  pow^ers  of  the  Continental  Congress       221,  222 
It  could  not  impose  taxes,  and  therefore  was  not  fully 

endowed  with  sovereignty     .  .  .  .  223 

Decline  of  the  Continental  Congress        .  .  .224 

Weakness  of  the  sentiment  of  union  ;  anarchical  tend- 
encies       .  ,  .  .  .  .  .  225 

The  Federal  Convention  (1787).  .  .       226,  227 


§  2.    The  Federal  Congress 

The  House  of  Representatives  .... 

The  three  fifths  compromise  .  .  . 

The  Connecticut  compromise    .  .  o  . 

The  Senate        .  .  .  .  .  .       23I3 

Electoral  districts  ;  the  **  Gerrymander  **     .  2333 

The  election  at  large   .  .  •  .  .235, 

Time  of  assembling  .  ,  .  .  236,237 

Privileges  of  members  .  ,  .  .  .238 

The  Speaker  .  .  .  .  .  .  238 

Impeachment  in  England;  in  the  United  States      239,  240 
The  president's  veto  power  ....       240,  241 


228 
229 
230 
232 

234 
236 


§  3 .    The  Federal  Executive 

The  title  of  ♦' President "  .  .  .  .  242 

The  electoral  college   .  .  .  .  .       243,  244 

The  twelfth  amendment  .  .  .  .  245,  246 

The  electoral  commission  (1877).  .  ,  .      247 

Provisions  against  a  lapse  of  the  presidency  .  247,  248 

Original  purpose  of  the  electoral  college  not  fulfilled  249 

Electors  formerly  chosen  in  many  states  by  districts  ; 

now  always  on  a  general  ticket  .  .  .       249,  250 

"  Minority  presidents  "  .  .  .  .  250 

Advantages  of  the  electoral  system  .  .  .  .251 

xxxiii 


CONTENTS 

Nomination    of    candidates    by    congressional    caucus 

(1800-24) 252,253 

Nominating  conventions;  the   "primary;"    the  dis- 
trict convention  ;  the  national  convention      .       253,  254 
Qualifications  for  the  presidency;  the  term  of  office  254,  255 
Powers  and  duties  of  the  president      .  .  .  255 

The  president's  message        .  .  .  .       256,  257 

Executive  departments  ;  the  cabinet    .  .  257,  258 

The  secretary  of  state .  .  .  .  .  .259 

Diplomatic  and  consular  service  .  .  260,  261 

The  secretary  of  the  treasury  .  .  .       261,  262 

The  other  departments     .  .  .  .  262,  263 

§  4.    The  Nation  and  the  States 
Difference  between  confederation  and  federal  union  263,  264 
Powers  granted  to  Congress  .  .  .       264,  265 

The  "  Elastic  Clause  " 266 

Powers  denied  to  the  states  .....      266 

Evils  of  an  inconvertible  paper  currency        .  266,  267 

Powers  denied  to  Congress  .....      268 

Bills  of  attainder     ......  269 

Intercitizenship  ;  mode  of  making  amendments  .       269,  270 

§  5 .    The  Federal  Judiciary 

Need  for  a  federal  judiciary  .          .          .  .          .271 

Federal  courts  and  judges           .          .           .  .            272 

District  attorneys  and  marshals        .          .  .          .273 

The  federal  jurisdiction    .          .          .          .  .           273 

§  6.    Territorial  Government 
The    Northwest    Territory    and    the    Ordinance    of 

1787 274,275 

Other  territories  and  their  government  .  .  276 

§  7.   Ratification  and  Amendments 

Provisions  for  ratification        .  .  .  .  ,276 

xxxiv 


CONTENTS 

Concessions  to  the  South  .....  277 

Demand  for  a  bill  of  rights    .....      277 
The  first  ten  amendments  .  .  .  .  278 

§  8.   A  Few  Words  about  Politics 
Federal  taxation  .  .  .  .  .  .279 

Hamilton's  policy  ;  excise  ;    tariff      .  .  279,  280 

Origin  of  American  political  parties  ;   strict  and  loose 

construction  of  the  Elastic  Clause  .  .       281,  282 

Tariff,  Internal  Improvements,  and  National  Bank    282,  283 
Civil  Service  reform         .  .  .  .  .  284 

Origin  of  the  *' spoils  system  "  in  the  state  politics  of 

New  York  and  Pennsylvania      .  .  .  .285 

**  Rotation  in  office  ;  "  the  Craw^ford  Act    .  285,  286 

How^  the  "spoils  system  "  was  made  national  .       286,  287 
The  Civil  Service  Act  of  1883  .  .  287,  288 

The  Australian  ballot  • .  .  .  .  .  .289 

The  English  system  of  accounting    for  election   ex- 
penses ......  290, 291 

Bibliographical  Notes       .  .  .  ...     293 

APPENDIX 

A.  The  Articles  of  Confederation       .          .  ,      309 

B.  The  Constitution  of  the  United  States  .           321 

C.  Magna  Charta  .           .           .           .           .  •352 

D.  Part  of  the  Bill  of  Rights,  1689         .  .           377 

E.  The  Fundamental  Orders  of  Connecticut  .      383 

F.  The  States  classified  according  to  origin  .            391 

G.  Table  of  states  and  territories  .  .  '393 
H.   Population   of  the  United  States,  1 790-1900, 

with  percentages  of  urban  population        .  394 

I.   An  Examination  Paper  for  Customs  Clerks         .      394 

J.   The  New  York  Corrupt  Practices  Act  of  1890       401 

K.   Specimen  of  an  Australian  ballot  .  .  408 

Index       .  .  .  .  .         ,         ,         .415 


CIVIL  GOVERNMENT   IN 
THE  UNITED  STATES 

I 

TAXATION   AND    GOVERNMENT 

IN  that  strangely  beautiful  story,  "  The 
Cloister  and  the  Hearth,"  in  which  Charles 
Reade  has  drawn  such  a  vivid  picture  of 
human  life  at  the  close  of  the  Middle  Ages, 
there  is  a  good  description  of  the  siege  of  a  re- 
volted town  by  the  army  of  the  Duke  of  Bur- 
gundy. Arrows  whiz,  catapults  hurl  their  pon- 
derous stones,  wooden  towers  are  built,  secret 
mines  are  exploded.  The  sturdy  citizens,  led 
by  a  tall  knight  who  seems  to  bear  a  charmed 
life,  baffle  every  device  of  the  besiegers.  At 
length  the  citizens  capture  the  brother  of  the 
duke's  general,  and  the  besiegers  capture  the 
tall  knight,  who  turns  out  to  be  no  knight  after 
all,  but  just  a  plebeian  hosier.  The  duke's  gen- 
eral is  on  the  point  of  ordering  the  tradesman 
who  has  made  so  much  trouble  to  be  shot,  but 
the  latter  still  remains  master  of  the  situation ; 
for,  as  he  dryly  observes,  if  any  harm  comes  to 

I 


TAXATION  AND  GOVERNMENT 

him,  the  enraged  citizens  will  hang  the  general's 
brother.  Some  parley  ensues,  in  which  the 
shrewd  hosier  promises  for  the  townsfolk  to  set 
free  their  prisoner  and  pay  a  round  sum  of 
money  if  the  besieging  army  will  depart  and 
leave  them  in  peace.  The  offer  is  accepted,  and 
so  the  matter  is  amicably  settled.  As  the 
worthy  citizen  is  about  to  take  his  leave,  the 
general  ventures  a  word  of  inquiry  as  to  the 
cause  of  the  town's  revolt.  "  What,  then,  is 
"Too much  your  grievance,  my  good  friend?" 
taxes"  Our  hosier  knight,  though  deft  with 

needle  and  keen  with  lance,  has  a  stammering 
tongue.  He  answers  :  "  Tuta  —  tuta  —  tuta  — 
tuta  —  too  much  taxes  !" 

"Too  much  taxes  :  "  those  three  little  words 
furnish  us  with  a  clue  wherewith  to  understand 
and  explain  a  great  deal  of  history.  A  great 
many  sieges  of  towns,  so  horrid  to  have  en- 
dured though  so  picturesque  to  read  about,  hun- 
dreds of  weary  marches  and  deadly  battles, 
thousands  of  romantic  plots  that  have  led  their 
inventors  to  the  scaffold,  have  owed  their  origin 
to  questions  of  taxation.  The  issue  between  the 
ducal  commander  and  the  warlike  tradesman 
has  been  tried  over  and  over  again  in  every 
country  and  in  every  age,  and  not  always  has 
the  oppressor  been  so  speedily  thwarted  and  got 
rid  of.  The  questions  as  to  how  much  the  taxes 
shall  be,  and  who  is  to  decide  how  much  they 

2 


TAXATION  AND  GOVERNMENT 

shall  be,  are  always  and  in  every  stage  of  society 
questions  of  most  fundamental  importance. 
And  ever  since  men  began  to  make  history,  a 
very  large  part  of  what  they  have  done,  in  the 
way  of  making  history,  has  been  the  attempt  to 
settle  these  questions,  whether  by  discussion  or 
by  blows,  whether  in  council  chambers  or  on 
the  battlefield.  The  French  Revolution  of 
1789,  the  most  terrible  political  convulsion  of 
modern  times,  was  caused  chiefly  by  "  too  much 
taxes,"  and  by  the  fact  that  the  people  who  paid 
the  taxes  were  not  the  people  who  decided  what 
the  taxes  were  to  be.  Our  own  Revolution, 
which  made  the  United  States  a  nation  inde- 
pendent of  Great  Britain,  was  brought  on  by 
the  disputed  question  as  to  who  was  to  decide 
what  taxes  American  citizens  must  pay. 

What,  then,  are  taxes?  The  question  is  one 
which  is  apt  to  come  up,  sooner  or  later,  to 
puzzle  children.  They  find  no  difficulty  in  un- 
derstanding the  butcher's  bill  for  so  many 
pounds  of  meat,  or  the  tailor's  bill  for  so  many 
suits  of  clothes,  where  the  value  received  is 
something  that  can  be  seen  and  handled.  But 
the  tax  bill,  though  it  comes  as  inevi-  what  is  tax- 
tably  as  the  autumnal  frosts,  bears  no  ^"""-^ 
such  obvious  relation  to  the  incidents  of  do- 
mestic life ;  it  is  not  quite  so  clear  what  the 
money  goes  for  ;  and  hence  it  is  apt  to  be  paid 
by  the  head  of  the  household  with  more  or  less 

3 


TAXATION  AND  GOVERNMENT 

grumbling,  while  for  the  younger  members  of 
the  family  it  requires  some  explanation. 

It  only  needs  to  be  pointed  out,  however, 
that  in  every  town,  some  things  are  done  for 
the  benefit  of  all  the  inhabitants  of  the  town, 
things  which  concern  one  person  just  as  much 
as  another.  Thus  roads  are  made  and  kept  in 
repair,  school-houses  are  built  and  salaries  paid 
to  school-teachers,  there  are  constables  who 
take  criminals  to  jail,  there  are  engines  for  put- 
ting out  fires,  there  are  public  libraries,  town 
cemeteries,  and  poor-houses.  Money  raised  for 
these  purposes,  which  are  supposed  to  concern 
all  the  inhabitants,  is  supposed  to  be  paid  by 
all  the  inhabitants,  each  one  furnishing  his 
share ;  and  the  share  which  each  one  pays  is  his 
town  tax. 

From  this  illustration  it  would  appear  that 
taxes  are  private  property  taken  for  public  pur- 
poses ;  and  in  making  this  statement  we  come 
very  near  the  truth.  Taxes  are  portions  of  pri- 
vate property  which  a  government  takes  for  its 
public  purposes.  Before  going  farther,  let  us 
pause  to  observe  that  there  is  one  other  way, 
_  ,    besides  taxation,  in  which  government 

Taxation  and  .  .  ^ 

eminent  do-  sometimes  takes  private  property  for 
'"^  public  purposes.     Roads  and  streets 

are  of  great  importance  to  the  general  public ; 
and  the  government  of  the  town  or  city  in 
which  you  live  may  see  fit,  in  opening  a  new 

4 


TAXATION  AND  GOVERNMENT 

street,  to  run  it  across  your  garden,  or  to  make 
you  move  your  house  or  shop  out  of  the  way 
for  it.  In  so  doing,  the  government  either  takes 
away  or  damages  some  of  your  property.  It 
exercises  rights  over  your  property  without  ask- 
ing your  permission.  This  power  of  govern- 
ment over  private  property  is  called  "  the  right 
of  eminent  domain."  It  means  that  a  man's 
private  interests  must  not  be  allowed  to  obstruct 
the  interests  of  the  whole  community  in  which 
he  lives.  But  in  two  ways  the  exercise  of  emi- 
nent domain  is  unlike  taxation.  In  the  first 
place,  it  is  only  occasional,  and  affects  only  cer- 
tain persons  here  or  there,  whereas  taxation 
goes  on  perpetually  and  affects  all  persons  who 
own  property.  In  the  second  place,  when  the 
government  takes  away  a  piece  of  your  land  to 
make  a  road,  it  pays  you  money  in  return  for 
it;  perhaps  not  quite  so  much  as  you  believ^e 
the  piece  of  land  was  worth  in  the  market ;  the 
average  human  nature  is  doubtless  such  that 
men  seldom  give  fair  measure  for  measure  un- 
less they  feel  compelled  to,  and  it  is  not  easy 
to  put  a  government  under  compulsion.  Still 
it  gives  you  something;  it  does  not  ask  you  to 
part  with  your  property  for  nothing.  Now  in 
the  case  of  taxation,  the  government  takes  your 
money  and  seems  to  make  no  return  to  you  in- 
dividually ;  but  it  is  supposed  to  return  to  you 
the  value  of  it   in   the  shape    of  well-paved 

5 


TAXATION  AND  GOVERNMENT 

streets,  good  schools,  efficient  protection  against 
criminals,  and  so  forth. 

In  giving  this  brief  preliminary  definition  of 
taxes  and  taxation,  we  have  already  begun  to 
speak  of  "  the  government  "  of  the  town  or  city 
in  which  you  live.  We  shall  presently  have  to 
speak  of  other  "governments,"  —  as  the  gov- 
ernment of  your  state  and  the  government  of 
the  United  States ;  and  we  shall  now  and  then 

What  is  gov-  have  occasion  to  allude  to  the  gov- 
ernment? ernments  of  other  countries  in  which 
the  people  are  free,  as,  for  example,  England ; 
and  of  some  countries  in  which  the  people  are 
not  free,  as,  for  example,  Russia.  It  is  desira- 
ble, therefore,  that  we  should  here  at  the  start 
make  sure  what  we  mean  by  "government,"  in 
order  that  we  may  have  a  clear  idea  of  what  we 
are  talking  about. 

Our  verb  "to  govern"  is  an  Old  French 
word,  one  of  the  great  host  of  French  words 
which  became  a  part  of  the  English  language 
between  the  eleventh  and  fourteenth  centuries, 
when  so  much  French  was  spoken  in  England. 
The  French  word  was  gouverner,  and  its  oldest 
form  was  the  Latin  guhernare^  a  word  which 
the  Romans  borrowed  from  the  Greek,  and 
meant  originally  "  to  steer  the  ship."  Hence  it 
very  naturally  came  to  mean  "  to  guide,"  "  to 
direct,"  "to  command."  The  comparison  be- 
tween governing  and  steering  was  a  happy  one. 

6 


TAXATION  AND  GOVERNMENT 

To  govern  is  not  to  command  as  a  master  com- 
mands a  slave,  but  it  is  to  issue  orders  and  give 
directions  for  the  common  good  ;  for  the  inter- 
ests of  the  man  at  the  helm  are  the  same  as 
those  of  the  people  in  the  ship.  All  The  "ship 
must  float  or  sink  together.  Hence  °^^^^^^" 
we  sometimes  speak  of  the  "ship  of  state,"  and 
we  often  call  the  state  a  "  commonwealth,"  or 
something  in  the  weal  or  welfare  of  which  all 
the  people  are  alike  interested. 

Government,  then,  is  the  directing  or  man- 
aging of  such  affairs  as  concern  all  the  people 
alike,  —  as,  for  example,  the  punishment  of 
criminals,  the  enforcement  of  contracts,  the  de- 
fence against  foreign  enemies,  the  maintenance 
of  roads  and  bridges,  and  so  on.  To  the  di- 
recting or  managing  of  such  affairs  all  the  peo- 
ple are  expected  to  contribute,  each  according 
to  his  ability,  in  the  shape  of  taxes.  Govern- 
ment is  something  which  is  supported  by  the 
people  and  kept  alive  by  taxation.  There  is  no 
other  way  of  keeping  it  alive. 

The  business  of  carrying  on  government  — 
of  steering  the  ship  of  state  —  either  requires 
some  special  training,  or  absorbs  all  the  time 
and  attention  of  those  who  carry  it  on  ;  and  ac- 
cordingly, in  all  countries,  certain  persons  or 
groups  of  persons  are  selected  or  in  some  way 
set  apart,  for  longer  or  shorter  periods  of  time, 
to  perform  the  work  of  government.    Such  per- 

7 


TAXATION  AND  GOVERNMENT 

sons  may  be  a  king  with  his  council,  as  in  the 
England  of  the  twelfth  century  ;  or  a  parliament 
led  by  a  responsible  ministry,  as  in  the  England 
of- to-day  ;  or  a  president  and  two  houses  of 
congress,  as  in  the  United  States ;  or  a  board 
of  selectmen,  as  in  a  New  England  town.  When 
"  The  gov-  we  speak  of  "  a  government  "  or  "  the 
emment"  government,"  we  often  mean  the  group 
of  persons  thus  set  apart  for  carrying  on  the 
work  of  government.  Thus,  by  "  the  Gladstone 
government  "  we  mean  Mr.  Gladstone,  with  his 
colleagues  in  the  cabinet  and  his  Liberal  ma- 
jority in  the  House  of  Commons  ;  and  by  "  the 
Lincoln  government,"  properly  speaking,  was 
meant  President  Lincoln,  with  the  Republican 
majorities  in  the  Senate  and  House  of  Repre- 
sentatives. 

"  The  government  "  has  always  many  things 
to  do,  and  there  are  many  different  lights  in 
which  we  might  regard  it.  But  for  the  present 
there  is  one  thing  which  we  need  especially  to 
keep  in  mind.  "  The  government "  is  the 
power  which  can  rightfully  take  away  a  part  of 
your  property,  in  the  shape  of  taxes,  to  be  used 
Whatever  for  pubHc  purposcs.  A  govemmcnt 
hT'^'\he^  is  not  worthy  of  the  name,  and  can- 
govern-  not  lottg  bc  kept  in  existence,  unless 

ment "  is  .  •  i  •  j 

the  power  It  Can  raisc  money  by  taxation,  and 
which  taxes  ^gg  forcc,  if  neccssary,  in  collecting 
its  taxes.    The  only  general  government  of  the 


TAXATION  AND  GOVERNMENT 

United  States  during  the  Revolutionary  War, 
and  for  six  years  after  its  close,  was  the  Conti- 
nental Congress,  which  had  no  authority  to  raise 
money  by  taxation.  In  order  to  feed  and  clothe 
the  army  and  pay  its  officers  and  soldiers,  it  was 
obliged  to  ask  for  money  from  the  several  states, 
and  hardly  ever  got  as  much  as  was  needed.  It 
was  obliged  to  borrow  millions  of  dollars  from 
France  and  Holland,  and  to  issue  promissory 
notes  which  soon  became  worthless.  After  the 
war  was  over  it  became  clear  that  this  so-called 
government  could  neither  preserve  order  nor 
pay  its  debts,  and  accordingly  it  ceased  to  be 
respected  either  at  home  or  abroad,  and  it  be- 
came necessary  for  the  American  people  to 
adopt  a  new  form  of  government.  Between  the 
old  Continental  Congress  and  the  government 
under  which  we  have  lived  since  1789,  the  dif- 
ferences were  many ;  but  by  far  the  most  es- 
sential difference  was  that  the  new  government 
could  raise  money  by  taxation,  and  was  thus 
enabled  properly  to  carry  on  the  work  of  gov- 
erning. 

If  we  are  in  any  doubt  as  to  what  is  really  the 
government  of  some  particular  country,  we  can- 
not do  better  than  observe  what  person  or  per- 
sons in  that  country  are  clothed  with  authority 
to  tax  the  people.  Mere  names,  as  customarily 
applied  to  governments,  are  apt  to  be  deceptive. 
Thus  in  the  middle  of  the  eighteenth  century 

9 


TAXATION  AND  GOVERNMENT 

France  and  England  were  both  called  "  king- 
doms ; "  but  so  far  as  kingly  power  was  con- 
cerned, Louis  XV.  was  a  very  different  sort  of 
a  king  from  George  II.  The  French  king  could 
impose  taxes  on  his  people,  and  it  might  there- 
fore be  truly  said  that  the  government  of  France 
was  in  the  king.  Indeed,  it  was  Louis  XV. 's 
immediate  predecessor  who  made  the  famous 
remark,  "  The  state  is  myself."  But  the  Eng- 
lish king  could  not  impose  taxes ;  the  only 
power  in  England  that  could  do  that  was  the 
House  of  Commons,  and  accordingly  it  is  cor- 
rect to  say  that  in  England,  at  the  time  of  which 
we  are  speaking,  the  government  was  (as  it  still 
is)  in  the  House  of  Commons. 

I  say,  then,  the  most  essential  feature  of  a 
government — or  at  any  rate  the  feature  with 
which  it  is  most  important  for  us  to  become 
familiar  at  the  start  —  is  its  power  of  taxation. 
The  government  is  that  which  taxes.  If  in- 
Difference  dividuals  takc  away  some  of  your  pro- 
tbiTand^^"  perty  for  purposes  of  their  own,  it  is 
robbery  robbcry ;  you  lose  your  money  and 

get  nothing  in  return.  But  if  the  government 
takes  away  some  of  your  property  in  the  shape 
of  taxes,  it  is  supposed  to  render  to  you  an 
equivalent  in  the  shape  of  good  government, 
something  without  which  our  lives  and  property 
would  not  be  safe.  Herein  seems  to  lie  the  dif- 
ference between  taxation  and  robbery.    When 

lO 


TAXATION  AND  GOVERNMENT 

the  highwayman  points  his  pistol  at  me  and  I 
hand  him  my  purse  and  watch,  I  am  robbed. 
But  when  I  pay  the  tax-collector,  who  can  seize 
my  watch  or  sell  my  house  over  my  head  if  I 
refuse,  I  am  simply  paying  what  is  fairly  due 
from  me  toward  supporting  the  government. 

In  what  we  have  been  saying  it  has  thus  far 
been  assumed  that  the  government  is  in  the 
hands  of  upright  and  competent  men  and  is 
properly  administered.  It  is  now  time  to  ob- 
serve that  robbery  may  be  committed  by  gov- 
ernments as  well  as  by  individuals.  If  the  busi- 
ness of  governing  is  placed  in  the  hands  of  men 
who  have  an  imperfect  sense  of  their  duty  to- 
ward the  public,  if  such  men    raise    „ 

■^  .  Sometimes 

money  by  taxation  and  then  spend  it  taxation  h 
on  their  own  pleasures,  or  to  increase  '^°  ^^'^ 
their  political  influence,  or  for  other  illegitimate 
purposes,  it  is  really  robbery,  just  as  much  as 
if  these  men  were  to  stand  with  pistols  by  the 
roadside  and  empty  the  wallets  of  people  pass- 
ing by.  They  make  a  dishonest  use  of  their 
high  position  as  members  of  government,  and 
extort  money  for  which  they  make  no  return  in 
the  shape  of  services  to  the  public.  History  is 
full  of  such  lamentable  instances  of  misgovern- 
ment,  and  one  of  the  most  important  uses  of 
the  study  of  history  is  to  teach  us  how  they 
have  occurred,  in  order  that  we  may  learn  how 
to  avoid  them,  as  far  as  possible,  in  the  future. 

II 


TAXATION  AND  GOVERNMENT 

When  we  begin  in  childhood  the  study  of 
history  we  are  attracted  chiefly  by  anecdotes  of 
heroes  and  their  battles,  kings  and  their  courts. 
The  study  of  how  the  Spartans  fought  at  Ther- 
history  mopylae,   how   Alfred    let   the   cakes 

burn,  how  Henry  VIII.  beheaded  his  wives, 
how  Louis  XIV.  used  to  live  at  Versailles.  It  is 
quite  right  that  we  should  be  interested  in  such 
personal  details,  the  more  so  the  better ;  for 
history  has  been  made  by  individual  men  and 
women,  and  until  we  have  understood  the  char- 
acter of  a  great  many  of  those  who  have  gone 
before  us,  and  how  they  thought  and  felt  in 
their  time,  we  have  hardly  made  a  fair  beginning 
in  the  study  of  history.  The  greatest  historians, 
such  as  Freeman  and  Mommsen,  show  as  lively 
an  interest  in  persons  as  in  principles ;  and  I 
would  not  give  much  for  the  historical  theories 
of  a  man  who  should  declare  himself  indifferent 
to  little  personal  details. 

Some  people,  however,  never  outgrow  the 
child's  notion  of  history  as  merely  a  mass  of 
pretty  anecdotes  or  stupid  annals,  without  any 
practical  bearing  upon  our  own  every-day  life. 
There  could  not  be  a  greater  mistake.  Very 
It  is  fiiu  of  y^i^^^  has  happened  in  the  past  which 
practical         has  not  somc  immediate  practical  les- 

lessons ;  ~  .        .  j       i  • 

sons  tor  us  ;  and  when  we  study  his- 
tory in  order  to  profit  by  the  experience  of  our 
ancestors,  to  find  out  wherein  they  succeeded 

12 


TAXATION  AND  GOVERNMENT 

and  wherein  they  failed,  in  order  that  we  may- 
emulate  their  success  and  avoid  their  errors, 
then  history  becomes  the  noblest  and  most  val- 
uable of  studies.  It  then  becomes,  moreover, 
an  arduous  pursuit,  at  once  oppressive  and  fas- 
cinating from  its  endless  wealth  of  material,  and 
abounding  in  problems  which  the  most  diligent 
student  can  never  hope  completely  to  solve. 

Few  people  have  the  leisure  to  undertake  a 
systematic  and  thorough  study  of  history,  but 
every  one  ought  to  find  time  to  learn  the  prin- 
cipal features  of  the  governments  under  which 
we  live,  and  to  get  some  inkling  of  the  way  in 
which  these  governments  have  come  into  exist- 
ence and  of  the  causes  which  have  made  them 
what  they  are.  Some  such  knowledge  andheipfuito 
is  necessary  for  the  proper  discharge  ^ouw^be" 
of  the  duties  of  citizenship.  Political  i°°^  citizens 
questions,  great  and  small,  are  perpetually  aris- 
ing, to  be  discussed  in  the  newspapers  and  voted 
on  at  the  polls  ;  and  it  is  the  duty  of  every  man 
and  woman,  young  or  old,  to  try  to  understand 
them.  That  is  a  duty  which  we  owe,  each  and 
all  of  us,  to  ourselves  and  to  our  fellow-country- 
men. For  if  such  questions  are  not  settled  in 
accordance  with  knowledge,  they  will  be  settled 
in  accordance  with  ignorance  ;  and  that  is  a  kind 
of  settlement  likely  to  be  fraught  with  results 
disastrous  to  everybody.  It  cannot  be  too  often 
repeated  that  eternal  vigilance  is  the  price  of 
13 


TAXATION  AND  GOVERNMENT 

liberty.  People  sometimes  argue  as  if  they  sup- 
posed that  because  our  national  government  is 
Eternal  vigi-  Called  a  rcpublic  and  not  a  monarchy, 
prk"of  lib-  ^^^  because  we  have  free  schools  and 
erty  universal  suffrage,  therefore  our  liber- 

ties are  forever  secure.  Our  government  is,  in- 
deed, in  most  respects,  a  marvel  of  political  skill ; 
and  in  ordinary  times  it  runs  so  smoothly  that 
now  and  then,  absorbed  as  most  of  us  are  in  do- 
mestic cares,  we  are  apt  to  forget  that  it  will  not 
run  of  itself.  To  insure  that  the  government  of 
the  nation  or  the  state,  of  the  city  or  the  town- 
ship, shall  be  properly  administered,  requires 
from  every  citizen  the  utmost  watchfulness  and 
intelligence  of  which  he  is  capable. 


14 


II 

THE   TOWNSHIP 

§  I.    The  New  England  Township. 

OF  the  various  kinds  of  government  to 
be  found  in  the  United  States,  we  may- 
begin  by  considering  that  of  the  New 
England  township.  As  we  shall  presently  see, 
it  is  in  principle  of  all  known  forms  of  govern- 
ment the  oldest  as  well  as  the  simplest.  Let  us 
observe  how  the  New  England  township  grew 
up. 

When  people  from  England  first  came  to 
dwell  in  the  wilderness  of  Massachusetts  Bay, 
they  settled  in  groups  upon  small  irregular- 
shaped  patches  of  land,  which  soon  came  to  be 
known  as  townships.  There  were  several  rea- 
sons why  they  settled  thus  in  small  groups, 
instead  of  scattering  about  over  the  country 
and  carving  out  broad  estates  for  themselves. 
In  the  first  place,  their  principal  rea-  New  Eng- 
son  for  coming  to  New  England  was    ^^""^  ^^^ 

.  '      .  "  .  settled  by 

their  dissatisfaction  with  the  way  in    church  con- 
which  church  affairs  were  managed  in    s'^^e^^'""^ 
the  old  country.    They  wished  to  bring  about  a 
reform   in    the  church,  in  such  wise    that  the 

15 


THE  TOWNSHIP 

members  of  a  congregation  should  have  more 
voice  than  formerly  in  the  church  government, 
and  that  the  minister  of  each  congregation  should 
be  more  independent  than  formerly  of  the 
bishop  and  of  the  civil  government.  They  also 
wished  to  abolish  sundry  rites  and  customs  of 
the  church  of  which  they  had  come  to  disap- 
prove. Finding  the  resistance  to  their  reforms 
quite  formidable  in  England,  and  having  some 
reason  to  fear  that  they  might  be  themselves 
crushed  in  the  struggle,  they  crossed  the  ocean 
in  order  to  carry  out  their  ideas  in  a  new  and 
remote  country  where  they  might  be  compara- 
tively secure  from  interference.  Hence  it  was 
quite  natural  that  they  should  come  in  congre- 
gations, led  by  their  favourite  ministers,  —  such 
men,  for  example,  as  Higginson  and  Cotton, 
Hooker  and  Davenport.  When  such  men, 
famous  in  England  for  their  bold  preaching 
and  imperilled  thereby,  decided  to  move  to 
America,  a  considerable  number  of  their  parish- 
ioners would  decide  to  accompany  them,  and 
similarly  minded  members  of  neighbouring 
churches  would  leave  their  own  pastor  and  join 
in  the  migration.  Such  a  group  of  people,  ar- 
riving on  the  coast  of  Massachusetts,  would 
naturally  select  some  convenient  locality,  where 
they  might  build  their  houses  near  together 
and  all  go  to  the  same  church. 

This  migration,  therefore,  was  a  movement, 
i6 


THE  NEW  ENGLAND  TOWNSHIP 

not  of  individuals  or  of  separate  families,  but 
of  church  congregations,  and  it  continued  to  be 
so  as  the  settlers  made  their  way  inland  and 
westward.  The  first  river  towns  of  Connecticut 
were  founded  by  congregations  coming  from 
Dorchester,  Cambridge,  and  Watertown.  This 
kind  of  settlement  was  favoured  by  the  govern- 
ment of  Massachusetts,  which  made 
grants  of  land,  not  to  individuals  but 
to  companies  of  people  who  wished  to  live  to- 
gether and  attend  the  same  church. 

In  the  second  place,  the  soil  of  New  Eng- 
land was  not  favourable  to  the  cultivation  of 
great  quantities  of  staple  articles,  such  as  rice  or 
tobacco,  so  that  there  was  nothing  to  tempt 
people  to  undertake  extensive  plantations. 
Most  of  the  people  lived  on  small  farms,  each 
family  raising  but  little  more  than  enough  food 
for  its  own  support ;  and  the  small 

^     ,        f.  ,      .  ...  Small  farms 

size  or  the  rarms  made  it  possible  to 
have  a  good  many  in  a  compact  neighbourhood. 
It  appeared  also  that  towns  could  be  more  easily 
defended  against  the  Indians  than  scattered 
plantations ;  and  this  doubtless  helped  to  keep 
people  together,  although  if  there  had  been 
any  strong  inducement  for  solitary  pioneers  to 
plunge  into  the  great  woods,  as  in  later  years  so 
often  happened  at  the  West,  it  is  not  likely 
that  any  dread  of  the  savages  would  have  hin- 
dered them. 

17 


THE  TOWNSHIP 

Thus  the  early  settlers  of  New  England  came 
to  live  in  townships.  A  township  would  con- 
sist of  about  as  many  farms  as  could  be  disposed 
within  convenient  distance  from  the  meeting- 
house, where  all  the  inhabitants,  young  and  old, 
gathered  every  Sunday,  coming  on  horseback 
or  afoot.  The  meeting-house  was  thus  centrally 
Township  situated,  and  near  it  was  the  town  pas- 
and  viUage  ^^j-e  or  "  common,"  with  the  school- 
house  and  the  blockhouse,  or  rude  fortress  for 
defence  against  the  Indians.  For  the  latter 
building  some  commanding  position  was  apt  to 
be  selected,  and  hence  we  so  often  find  the  old 
village  streets  of  New  England  running  along 
elevated  ridges  or  climbing  over  beetling  hill- 
tops. Around  the  meeting-house  and  common 
the  dwellings  gradually  clustered  into  a  village, 
and  after  a  while  the  tavern,  store,  and  town- 
house  made  their  appearance. 

Among  the  people  who  thus  tilled  the  farms 
and  built  up  the  villages  of  New  England,  the 
differences  in  what  we  should  call  social  position, 
though  noticeable,  were  not  extreme.  While  in 
England  some  had  been  esquires  or  country 
magistrates,  or  "  lords  of  the  manor,"  —  a 
phrase  which  does  not  mean  a  member  of  the 
peerage,  but  a  landed  proprietor  with  dependent 
tenants ;  ^  some  had  been  yeomen,  or  persons 
holding  farms  by  some  free  kind  of  tenure  ; 
^  Compare  the  Scottish  "  laird." 


THE  NEW  ENGLAND  TOWNSHIP 

some  had  been  artisans  or  tradesmen  in  cities. 
All  had  for  many  generations  been  more  or 
less    accustomed    to  self-government    ^   . ,     . 

~         ..  .  Social  posi- 

and  to  public  meetmgs  for  discussmg  tion  of 
local  affairs.  That  self-government,  ^^"^^" 
especially  as  far  as  church  matters  were  con- 
cerned, they  were  stoutly  bent  upon  maintain- 
ing and  extending.  Indeed,  that  was  what  they 
had  crossed  the  ocean  for.  Under  these  circum- 
stances they  developed  a  kind  of  government 
which  we  may  describe  in  the  present  tense,  for 
its  methods  are  pretty  much  the  same  to-day 
that  they  were  two  centuries  ago. 

In  a  New  England  township  the  people  di- 
rectly govern  themselves ;  the  government  is  the 
people,  or,  to  speak  with  entire  precision,  it  is 
all  the  male  inhabitants  of  one  and  twenty  years 
of  age  and  upwards.  The  people  tax  themselves. 
Once  each  year,  usually  in  March,  but  some- 
times as  early  as  February  or  as  late  as  April,  a 
*'  town-meeting  "  is  held,  at  which  all  The  town- 
the  grown  men  of  the  township  are  ""^^^'"s 
expected  to  be  present  and  to  vote,  while  any 
one  may  introduce  motions  or  take  part  in  the 
discussion.  In  early  times  there  was  a  fine  for 
non-attendance,  but  that  is  no  longer  the  case  ; 
it  is  supposed  that  a  due  regard  to  his  own  in- 
terests will  induce  every  man  to  come. 

The  town-meeting  is  held  in  the  town-house, 
but  at  first  it  used  to  be  held  in  the  church, 

19 


THE  TOWNSHIP 

which  was  thus  a  "  meeting-house  "  for  civil  as 
well  as  ecclesiastical  purposes.  At  the  town- 
meeting  measures  relating  to  the  administration 
of  town  affairs  are  discussed  and  adopted  or  re- 
jected ;  appropriations  are  made  for  the  public 
expenses  of  the  town,  or  in  other  words  the 
amount  of  the  town  taxes  for  the  year  is  deter- 
mined ;  and  town  officers  are  elected  for  the 
year.    Let  us  first  enumerate  these  officers. 

The  principal  executive  magistrates  of  the 
town  are  the  selectmen.  They  are  three,  five, 
seven,  or  nine  in  number,  according  to  the  size 
of  the  town  and  the  amount  of  public  business 
to  be  transacted.  The  odd  number  insures  a 
majority  decision  in  case  of  any  difference  of 
opinion  among  them.    They  have  the  general 

management  of  the  public  business. 

They  issue  warrants  for  the  holding 
of  town-meetings,  and  they  can  call  such  a  meet- 
ing at  any  time  during  the  year  when  there 
seems  to  be  need  for  it,  but  the  warrant  must 
always  specify  the  subjects  which  are  to  be  dis- 
cussed and  acted  on  at  the  meeting.  The  select- 
men also  lay  out  highways,  grant  licenses,  and 
impanel  jurors ;  they  may  act  as  health  officers 
and  issue  orders  regarding  sewerage,  the  abate- 
ment of  nuisances,  or  the  isolation  of  contagious 
diseases ;  in  many  cases  they  act  as  assessors  of 
taxes,  and  as  overseers  of  the  poor.  They  are 
the  proper  persons  to  listen  to  complaints  if 

20 


THE  NEW  ENGLAND  TOWNSHIP 

anything  goes  wrong  In  the  town.  In  county 
matters  and  state  matters  they  speak  for  the 
town,  and  if  it  is  a  party  to  a  lawsuit  they  repre- 
sent it  in  court ;  for  the  New  England  town  is  a 
legal  corporation,  and  as  such  can  hold  property, 
and  sue  and  be  sued.  In  a  certain  sense  the 
selectmen  may  be  said  to  be  "  the  government  " 
of  the  town  during  the  intervals  between  the 
town-meetings. 

An  officer  no  less  important  than  the  select- 
men is  the  town-clerk.  He  keeps  the  record  of 
all  votes  passed  in  the  town-meetings.    ^       ,  , 

t'  &_        Town-clerk 

He  also  records  the  names  of  candi- 
dates and  the  number  of  votes  for  each  in  the 
election  of  state  and  county  officers.  He  records 
the  births,  marriages,  and  deaths  in  the  town- 
ship, and  issues  certificates  to  persons  who 
declare  an  intention  of  marriage.  He  likewise 
keeps  on  record  accurate  descriptions  of  the  po- 
sition and  bounds  of  public  roads  ;  and,  in  short, 
has  general  charge  of  all  matters  of  town-record. 

Every  town  has  also  its  treasurer,  who  receives 
and  takes  care  of  the  money  coming  in  from  the 
taxpayers,  or  whatever  money  belongs  Town- 
to  the  town.  Out  of  this  money  he  ^'^^"^'^^ 
pays  the  public  expenses.  He  must  keep  a  strict 
account  of  his  receipts  and  payments,  and  make 
a  report  of  them  each  year. 

Every  town  has  one  or  more  constables,  who 
serve  warrants  from  the  selectmen  and  writs  from 

21 


THE  TOWNSHIP 

the  law  courts.   They  pursue  criminals  and  take 

them  to  jail.    They  summon  jurors.     In  many 

towns  they  serve  as  collectors  of  taxes, 

Co  lists  blcs 

but  in  many  other  towns  a  special  offi- 
cer is  chosen  for  that  purpose.  When  a  person 
fails  to  pay  his  taxes,  after  a  specified  time  the 
collector  has  authority  to  seize  upon  his  pro- 
perty and  sell  it  at  auction,  paying  the  tax  and 
costs  out  of  the  proceeds  of  the  sale,  and  hand- 
ing over  the  balance  to  the  owner.  In  some 
cases,  where  no  property  can  be  found  and  there 
is  reason  to  believe  that  the  delinquent  is  not 
acting  in  good  faith,  he  can  be  arrested  and 
kept  in  prison  until  the  tax  and  costs  are  paid, 
or  until  he  is  released  by  the  proper  legal 
methods. 

Where  the  duties  of  the  selectmen  are  likely 
to  be  too  numerous,  the  town  may  choose  three 
Assessors  of  Of  morc  asscssors  of  taxes  to  prepare 
?vTrsee«'^of  ^^^  ^^^  ^^^^^  ;  and  three  or  more  over- 
the  poor  sccrs  of  the  poor,  to  regulate  the  man- 
agement of  the  village  almshouse  and  confer 
with  other  towns  upon  such  questions  as  often 
arise  concerning  the  settlement  and  maintenance 
of  homeless  paupers. 

Every  town  has  its  school  committee.  In 
1647  th^  legislature  of  Massachusetts  enacted  a 
Public  law  with  the  following  preamble  :  "  It 

schools  being  one  chief  project  of  that  old  de- 

luder,  Satan,  to  keep  men  from  the  knowledge 

22 


THE  NEW  ENGLAND  TOWNSHIP 

of  the  Scriptures,  as  in  former  times  by  keeping 
them  in  an  unknown  tongue,  so  in  these  latter 
times  by  persuading  from  the  use  of  tongues, 
that  so  at  least  the  true  sense  and  meaning  of 
the  original  might  be  clouded  and  corrupted 
with  false  glosses  of  deceivers ;  to  the  end  that 
learning  may  not  be  buried  in  the  graves  of  our 
forefathers,  in  church  and  commonwealth,  the 
Lord  assisting  our  endeavours  ;  "  it  was  there- 
fore ordered  that  every  township  containing  fifty 
families  or  householders  should  forthwith  set  up 
a  school  in  which  children  might  be  taught  to 
read  and  write,  and  that  every  township  con- 
taining one  hundred  families  or  householders 
should  set  up  a  school  in  which  boys  might  be 
fitted  for  entering  Harvard  College.  Even  be- 
fore this  statute,  several  towns,  as  for  instance 
Roxbury  and  Dedham,  had  begun  to  appropri- 
ate money  for  free  schools ;  and  these  were  the 
beginnings  of  a  system  of  public  education  which 
has  come  to  be  adopted  throughout  the  United 
States. 

The  school  committee  exercises  powers  of 
such  a  character  as  to  make  it  a  body  of  great 
importance.  The  term  of  service  of  school 
the  members  is  three  years,  one  third  committees 
being  chosen  annually.  The  number  of 'mem- 
bers must  therefore  be  some  multiple  of  three. 
The  slow  change  in  the  membership  of  the  board 
insures  that  a  large  proportion  of  the  members 
23 


THE  TOWNSHIP 

shall  always  be  familiar  with  the  duties  of  the 
place.  The  school  committee  must  visit  all  the 
public  schools  at  least  once  a  month,  and  make 
a  report  to  the  town  every  year.  It  is  for  them 
to  decide  what  text-books  are  to  be  used.  They 
examine  candidates  for  the  position  of  teacher 
and  issue  certificates  to  those  whom  they  select. 
The  certificate  is  issued  in  duplicate,  and  one 
copy  is  handed  to  the  selectmen  as  a  warrant 
that  the  teacher  is  entitled  to  receive  a  salary. 
Teachers  are  appointed  for  a  term  of  one  year, 
but  where  their  work  is  satisfactory  the  appoint- 
ments are  usually  renewed  year  after  year.  A 
recent  act  in  Massachusetts  permits  the  appoint- 
ment of  teachers  to  serve  during  good  behaviour, 
but  few  boards  have  as  yet  availed  themselves 
of  this  law.  If  the  amount  of  work  to  be  done 
seems  to  require  it,  the  committee  appoints  a 
superintendent  of  schools.  He  is  a  sort  of  lieu- 
tenant of  the  school  committee,  and  under  its 
general  direction  carries  on  the  detailed  work  of 
supervision. 

Other  town  ofHcers  are  the  surveyors  of  high- 
ways, who  are  responsible  for  keeping  the  roads 
and  bridges  in  repair  ;  field-drivers  and  pound- 
keepers  ;  fence-viewers  ;  surveyors  of  lumber, 
measurers  of  wood,  and  sealers  of  weights  and 
measures. 

The  field-driver  takes  stray  animals  to  the 
pound,  and  then  notifies  their  owner ;  or  if  he 
24 


THE  NEW  ENGLAND  TOWNSHIP 

does  not  know  who  is   the  owner  he  posts  a 
description  of  the  animals  in  some  such  place 
as   the  village  store  or  tavern,  or  has  it  pub- 
lished  in   the   nearest  country  news-    Fieid.drivere 
paper.    Meanwhile  the  strays  are  duly    and  pound- 
fed  by  the  pound-keeper,  who  does 
not  let  them  out  of  his  custody  until  all  expenses 
have  been  paid. 

If  the  owners  of  contiguous  farms,  gardens, 
or  fields  get  into  a  dispute  about  their  partition 
fences  or  walls,  they  may  apply  to  one  Fence- 
of  the  fence-viewers,  of  whom  each  '^'^"'ers 
town  has  at  least  two.  The  fence-viewer  decides 
the  matter,  and  charges  a  small  fee  for  his  ser- 
vices. Where  it  is  necessary  he  may  order  suit- 
able walls  or  fences  to  be  built. 

The  surveyors  of  lumber  measure  and  mark 
lumber  offered  for  sale.  The  measurers  of  wood 
do  the  same  for  firewood.  The  sealers  other 
test  the  correctness  of  weights  and  °^'^"^ 
measures  used  in  trade,  and  tradesmen  are  not 
allowed  to  use  weights  and  measures  that  have 
not  been  thus  officially  examined  and  sealed. 
Measurers  and  sealers  may  be  appointed  by  the 
selectmen. 

Such  are  the  officers  always  to  be  found  in 
the  Massachusetts  town,  except  where  the 
duties  of  some  of  them  are  discharged  by  the 
selectmen.  Of  these  officers,  the  selectmen, 
town-clerk,   treasurer,  constable,   school   com- 

25 


THE  TOWNSHIP 

mittee,  and  assessors  must  be  elected  by  ballot 
at  the  annual  town-meeting. 

When  this  meeting  is  to  be  called  the  select- 
men issue  a  warrant  for  the  purpose,  specifying 
the  time  and  place  of  meeting  and  the  nature 
of  the  business  to  be  transacted.  The  constable 
posts  copies  of  the  warrant  in  divers  conspicu- 
Caiiine  the  °^^  placcs  not  Icss  than  a  week  before 
town-meet-  the  time  appointed.  Then,  after  mak- 
*"^  ing  a  note  upon  the  warrant  that  he 

has  duly  served  it,  he  hands  it  over  to  the  town- 
clerk.  On  the  appointed  day,  when  the  people 
have  assembled,  the  town-clerk  calls  the  meet- 
ing to  order  and  reads  the  warrant.  The  meet- 
ing then  proceeds  to  choose  by  ballot  its  pre- 
siding officer,  or  "  moderator,"  and  business 
goes  on  in  accordance  with  parliamentary  cus- 
toms pretty  generally  recognized  among  all 
people  who  speak  English. 

At  this  meeting  the  amount  of  money  to  be 
raised  by  taxation  for  town  purposes  is  deter- 
mined. But,  as  we  shall  see,  every  inhabitant 
of  a  town  lives  not  only  under  a  town  govern- 
ment, but  also  under  a  county  government  and 
a  state  government,  and  all  these  governments 
Town  coun-  ^avc  to  bc  supportcd  by  taxation.  In 
ty,  and  Massachusctts     the     state    and    the 

county  make  use  of  the  machinery  of 
the  town  government  in  order  to  assess  and 
collect  their  taxes.     The  total  amounts  to  be 

26 


THE  NEW  ENGLAND  TOWNSHIP 

raised  are  equitably  divided  among  the  several 
towns  and  cities,  so  that  each  town  pays  its 
proportionate  share.  Each  year,  therefore,  the 
town  assessors  know  that  a  certain  amount  of 
money  must  be  raised  from  the  taxpayers  of 
their  town,  —  partly  for  the  town,  partly  for  the 
county,  partly  for  the  state,  —  and  for  the  general 
convenience  they  usually  assess  it  upon  the  tax- 
payers all  at  once.  The  amounts  raised  for  the 
state  and  county  are  usually  very  much  smaller 
than  the  amount  raised  for  the  town.  As  these 
amounts  are  all  raised  in  the  town  and  by  town 
officers,  we  shall  find  it  convenient  to  sum  up  in 
this  place  what  we  have  to  say  about  the  way 
in  which  taxes  are  raised.  Bear  in  mind  that  we 
are  still  considering  the  New  England  system, 
and  our  illustration  is  taken  from  the  practice 
in  Massachusetts.  But  the  general  principles 
of  taxation  are  so  similar  in  the  different  states 
that,  although  we  may  now  and  then  have  to 
point  to  differences  of  detail,  we  shall  not  need 
to  go  over  the  whole  subject  again.  We  have 
now  to  observe  how  and  upon  whom  the  taxes 
are  assessed. 

They  are  assessed  partly  upon  persons,  but 
chiefly  upon  property,  and  property  is  divisible 
into  real  estate  and  personal  estate. 
1  he  tax  assessed  upon  persons  is 
called  the  poll-tax,  and  cannot  exceed  the  sum 
of  two  dollars  upon  every  male  citizen  over 
27 


THE  TOWNSHIP 

twenty  years  old.  In  cases  of  extreme  poverty 
the  assessors  may  remit  the  poll-tax. 

As  to  real  estate,  there  are  in  every  town 
some  lands  and  buildings  which,  for  rea- 
Reai-estate  sons  of  public  poHcy,  are  exempted 
^"^  from  paying  taxes  ;  as,  for  example, 

churches,  graveyards,  and  tombs  ;  many  char- 
itable institutions,  including  universities  and 
colleges  ;  and  public  buildings  which  belong  to 
the  state  or  to  the  United  States.  All  lands  and 
buildings,  except  such  as  are  exempt  by  law, 
must  pay  taxes. 

Personal  property  includes  pretty  much 
everything  that  one  can  own  except  lands  and 
Taxes  on  buildings,  —  pretty  much  everything 
personal  that   Can  be  moved  or  carried  about 

^"^"^^  from  one  place  to  another.     It   thus 

includes  ready  money,  stocks  and  bonds,  ships 
and  wagons,  furniture,  pictures,  and  books.  It 
also  includes  the  amount  of  debts  due  to  a  per- 
son in  excess  of  the  amount  that  he  owes ;  also 
the  income  from  his  employment,  whether  in 
the  shape  of  profits  from  business  or  a  fixed 
salary. 

Some  personal  property  is  exempted  from 
taxation ;  as,  for  example,  household  furniture 
to  the  amount  of  $1000  in  value,  and  income 
from  employment  to  the  extent  of  ^2000.  The 
obvious  intent  of  this  exemption  is  to  prevent 
taxation  from  bearing  too  hard  upon  persons 
28 


THE  NEW  ENGLAND  TOWNSHIP 

of  small  means ;   and  for  a  similar  reason  the 
tools  of  farmers  and  mechanics  are  exempted/ 

The  date  at  which  property  is  annually  reck- 
oned for  assessment  is  in  Massachusetts  the 
first  day  of  May.  The  poll-tax  is  assessed  upon 
each  person  in  the  town  or  city  where  he  has 
his  legal  habitation  on  that  day  ;  and  -^^^^^  ^^^ 
as  a  general  rule  the  taxes  upon   his    where  taxes 

,  1  1   •  ^re  assessed 

personal  property  are  assessed  to  him 
in  the  same  place.  But  taxes  upon  lands  or 
buildings  are  assessed  in  the  city  or  town  where 
they  are  situated,  and  to  the  person,  wherever 
he  lives,  who  is  the  owner  of  them  on  the  first 
day  of  May.  Thus  a  man  who  lives  in  the 
Berkshire  mountains,  say  for  example  in  the 
town  of  Lanesborough,  will  pay  his  poll-tax  to 
that  town.  For  his  personal  property,  whether 
it  be  bonds  of  a  railroad  in  Colorado,  or  shares 
in  a  bank  in  New  York,  or  costly  pictures  in 
his  house  at  Lanesborough,  he  will  likewise 
pay  taxes  to  Lanesborough.  So  for  the  house 
in  which  he  lives,  and  the  land  upon  which  it 
stands,  he  pays  taxes  to  that  same  town.  But 
if  he  owns  at  the  same  time  a  house  in  Boston, 
he  pays  taxes  for  it  to  Boston,  and  if  he  owns  a 
block  of  shops  in  Chicago  he  pays  taxes  for  the 
same  to  Chicago.  It  is  very  apt  to  be  the  case 
that  the  rate  of  taxation  is  higher  in  large  cities 

^  United  States   bonds  are  also  especially   exempted  from 
taxadon. 

29 


THE  TOWNSHIP 

than  in  villages  ;  and  accordingly  it  often  hap- 
pens that  wealthy  inhabitants  of  cities,  who  own 
houses  in  some  country  town,  move  into  them 
before  the  first  of  May,  and  otherwise  comport 
themselves  as  legal  residents  of  the  country 
town,  in  order  that  their  personal  property  may 
be  assessed  there  rather  than  in  the  city. 

About  the  first  of  May  the  assessors  call 
upon  the  inhabitants  of  their  town  to  render  a 
true  statement  as  to  their  property.  The  most 
approved  form  is  for  the  assessors  to  send  by 
mail  to  each  taxable  inhabitant  a  printed  list  of 
questions,  with  blank  spaces  which  he  is  to  fill 
with  written  answers.  The  questions  relate  to 
every  kind  of  property,  and  when  the 
person  addressed  returns  the  list  to 
the  assessors  he  must  make  oath  that  to  the 
best  of  his  knowledge  and  belief  his  answers  are 
true.  He  thus  becomes  liable  to  the  penalties 
for  perjury  if  he  can  be  proved  to  have  sworn 
falsely.  A  reasonable  time  —  usually  six  or 
eight  weeks  —  is  allowed  for  the  list  to  be  re- 
turned to  the  assessors.  If  any  one  fails  to  return 
his  list  by  the  specified  time,  the  assessors  must 
make  their  own  estimate  of  the  probable  amount 
of  his  property.  If  their  estimate  is  too  high, 
he  may  petition  the  assessors  to  have  the  error 
corrected,  but  in  many  cases  it  may  prove  trou- 
blesome to  effect  this. 

Observe  here  an  important  difference  between 
30 


THE  NEW  ENGLAND  TOWNSHIP 

the  imposition  of  taxes  upon  real  estate  and 
upon  personal  property.  Houses  and  lands 
cannot  run  away  or  be  tucked  out  of  sight. 
Their  value,  too,  is  something  of  which  the 
assessors  can  very  likely  judge  as  well  as  the 
owner.  Deception  is  therefore  ex-  cheating  the 
tremely  difficult,  and  taxation  for  real  g°^""ment 
estate  is  pretty  fairly  distributed  among  the  dif- 
ferent owners.  With  regard  to  personal  estate 
it  is  very  different.  It  is  comparatively  easy  to 
conceal  one's  ownership  of  some  kinds  of  per- 
sonal property,  or  to  understate  one's  income. 
Hence  the  temptation  to  lessen  the  burden  of 
the  tax  bill  by  making  false  statements  is  con- 
siderable, and  doubtless  a  good  deal  of  decep- 
tion is  practised.  There  are  many  people  who 
are  too  honest  to  cheat  individuals,  but  still  con- 
sider it  a  venial  sin  to  cheat  the  government. 

After  the  assessors  have  obtained  all  their 
returns  they  can  calculate  the  total  value  of  the 
taxable  property  in  the  town  ;  and  knowing  the 
amount  of  the  tax  to  be  raised,  it  is  easy  to  cal- 
culate the  rate  at  which  the  tax  is  to  be  assessed. 
In  most  parts  of  the  United  States  a  The  rate  of 
rate  of  one  and  a  half  per  cent.,  or  ^  1 5  ^^''^^o" 
tax  on  each  $1000  worth  of  property,  would  be 
regarded  as  moderate  ;  three  per  cent,  would  be 
regarded  as  excessively  high.  At  the  lower  of 
these  rates  a  man  worth  $50,000  would  pay  $750 
for  his   yearly  taxes.    The  annual   income  of 

31 


THE  TOWNSHIP 

$50,000,  invested  on  good  security,  is  hardly 
more  than  I2500.  Obviously  $750  is  a  large 
sum  to  subtract  from  such  an  income. 

In  point  of  fact,  however,  the  tax  is  seldom 
quite  as  heavy  as  this.  It  is  not  easy  to  tell  ex- 
actly how  much  a  man  is  worth,  and  accordingly 
assessors,  not  wishing  to  be  too  disagreeable  in 
the  discharge  of  their  duties,  have  naturally 
fallen  into  a  way  of  giving  the  lower  valuation 
the  benefit  of  the  doubt,  until  in  many  places 
Under-  a  custom  has  grown  up  of  regularly 

vaiuauon  undervaluing  property  for  purposes 
of  taxation.  Very  much  as  liquid  measures  have 
gradually  shrunk  until  it  takes  five  quart  bottles 
to  hold  a  gallon,  so  there  has  been  a  shrinkage 
of  valuations  until  it  has  become  common  to 
tax  a  man  for  only  three  fourths  or  perhaps  two 
thirds  of  what  his  property  is  worth  in  the  mar- 
ket. This  makes  the  rate  higher,  to  be  sure, 
but  the  individual  taxpayer  nevertheless  seems 
to  feel  relieved  by  it.  Allowing  for  this  under- 
valuation, we  may  say  that  a  man  worth  $50,000 
commonly  pays  not  less  than  $500  for  his  yearly 
taxes,  or  about  one  fifth  of  the  annual  income 
of  the  property.  We  thus  begin  to  see  what  a 
The  burden  heavy  burden  taxes  are,  and  how  es- 
of  taxation  scntial  to  good  government  it  is  that 
citizens  should  know  what  their  money  goes  for, 
and  should  be  able  to  exert  some  effective  con- 
trol over  the  public  expenditures.  Where  the 
32 


THE  NEW  ENGLAND  TOWNSHIP 

rate  of  taxation  in  a  town  rises  to  a  very  high 
point,  such  as  two  and  a  half  or  three  per  cent., 
the  prosperity  of  the  town  is  apt  to  be  seriously 
crippled.  Traders  and  manufacturers  move  away 
to  other  towns,  or  those  who  would  otherwise 
come  to  the  town  in  question  stay  away,  be- 
cause they  cannot  afford  to  use  up  all  their 
profits  in  paying  taxes.  If  such  a  state  of  things 
is  long  kept  up,  the  spirit  of  enterprise  is  weak- 
ened, the  place  shows  signs  of  untidiness  and 
want  of  thrift,  and  neighbouring  towns,  once 
perhaps  far  behind  it  in  growth,  by  and  by 
shoot  ahead  of  it  and  take  away  its  business. 

Within  its  proper  sphere,  government  by 
town-meeting  is  the  form  of  government  most 
effectively  under  watch  and  control.  Everything 
is  done  in  the  full  daylight  of  publicity.  The 
specific  objects  for  which  public  money  is  to  be 
appropriated  are  discussed  in  the  presence  of 
everybody,  and  any  one  who  disapproves  of  any 
of  these  objects,  or  of  the  way  in  which  it  is  pro- 
posed to  obtain  it,  has  an  opportunity  to  declare 
his  opinions.  Under  this  form  of  government 
people  are  not  so  liable  to  bewildering  delusions 
as  under  other  forms.  I  refer  especially  to  the 
delusion  that  "  the  Government "  is  a  sort  of 
mysterious  power,  possessed  of  a  magic  -pj^^  „  j^ 
inexhaustible  fund  of  wealth,  and  able  ^nti "  ^eiu- 
to  do  all  manner  of  things  for  the 
benefit  of  "  the  People."     Some  such   notion 

33 


THE  TOWNSHIP 

as  this,  more  often  implied  than  expressed,  is 
very  common,  and  it  is  inexpressibly  dear  to 
demagogues.  It  is  the  prolific  root  from  which 
springs  that  luxuriant  crop  of  humbug  upon 
which  political  tricksters  thrive  as  pigs  fatten 
upon  corn.  In  point  of  fact  no  such  govern- 
ment, armed  with  a  magic  fund  of  its  own,  has 
ever  existed  upon  the  earth.  No  government 
has  ever  yet  used  any  money  for  public  pur- 
poses which  it  did  not  first  take  from  its  own 
people,  —  unless  when  it  may  have  plundered 
it  from  some  other  people  in  victorious  warfare. 

The  inhabitant  of  a  New  England  town  is 
perpetually  reminded  that  "  the  Government " 
is  "  the  People."  Although  he  may  think 
loosely  about  the  government  of  his  state  or 
the  still  more  remote  government  at  Washing- 
ton, he  is  kept  pretty  close  to  the  facts  where 
local  affairs  are  concerned,  and  in  this  there  is 
a  political  training  of  no  small  value. 

In  the  kind  of  discussion  which  it  provokes, 
in  the  necessity  of  facing  argument  with  argu- 
Educationai  ment  and  of  keeping  one's  temper 
t^n-meet-  u^der  control,  the  town-meeting  is 
'"g  the  best  political  training  school   in 

existence.  Its  educational  value  is  far  higher 
than  that  of  the  newspaper,  which,  in  spite  of 
its  many  merits  as  a  diffuser  of  information,  is 
very  apt  to  do  its  best  to  bemuddle  and  sophis- 
ticate plain  facts.  The  period  when  town-meet- 
34 


THE  NEW  ENGLAND  TOWNSHIP 

ings  were  most  important  from  the  wide  scope 
of  their  transactions  was  the  period  of  earnest 
and  sometimes  stormy  discussion  that  ushered 
in  our  Revolutionary  war.  Country  towns  were 
then  of  more  importance  relatively  than  now ; 
one  country  town  —  Boston  —  was  at  the  same 
time  a  great  political  centre ;  and  its  meetings 
were  presided  over  and  addressed  by  men  of 
commanding  ability,  among  whom  Samuel 
Adams,  "  the  man  of  the  town-meeting,"  ^  was 
foremost.  In  those  days  great  principles  of 
government  were  discussed  with  a  wealth  of 
knowledge  and  stated  with  masterly  skill  in 
town-meeting. 

The  town-meeting  is  to  a  very  limited  extent 
a  legislative  body ;  it  can  make  sundry  regula- 
tions for  the  management  of  its  local  affairs. 
Such  regulations  are  known  by  a  very  ancient 
name, "  by-laws."  By  is  an  Old  Norse 

J  •         er  »>  1   •  By-laws 

word  meanmg  "  town,    and  it  appears 
in   the   names   of  such    towns    as    Derby  and 
Whitby  in  the  part  of  England  overrun  by  the 
Danes  in  the  ninth  and  tenth  centuries.    By- 
laws are  town  laws.^ 

In  the  selectmen  and  various  special  officers 

^  The  phrase  is  Professor  Hosmer's  :  see  his  Samuel 
Adams,  the  Man  of  the  Town  Meeting,  in  Johns  Hopkins 
Univ.  Studies,  vol.  ii.  no.  iv.  ;  also  his  Samuel  Adams,  in 
American  Statesmen  Series,  Boston,  1885. 

"^  In  modern  usage  the  rules  and  regulations  of  clubs, 
learned  societies,  and  other  associations,  are  also  called  by-laws. 


THE  TOWNSHIP 

the  town  has  an  executive  department ;  and 
here  let  us  observe  that,  while  these  officials  are 
kept  strictly  accountable  to  the  people,  they 
are  intrusted  with  very  considerable  authority. 
Power  and  Things  are  not  so  arranged  that  an 
responsibility  officer  can  plead  that  he  has  failed  in 
his  duty  from  lack  of  power.  There  is  ample 
power,  joined  with  complete  responsibihty. 
This  is  especially  to  be  noticed  in  the  case  of 
the  selectmen.  They  must  often  be  called  upon 
to  exercise  a  wide  discretion  in  what  they  do, 
yet  this  excites  no  serious  popular  distrust  or 
jealousy.  The  annual  election  affiDrds  an  easy 
means  of  dropping  an  unsatisfactory  officer. 
But  in  practice  nothing  has  been  more  common 
than  for  the  same  persons  to  be  reelected  as  se- 
lectmen or  constables  or  town-clerks  for  year 
after  year,  as  long  as  they  are  able  or  willing  to 
serve.  The  notion  that  there  is  anything  pe- 
culiarly American  or  democratic  in  what  is 
known  as  "rotation  in  office"  is  therefore  not 
sustained  by  the  practice  of  the  New  England 
town,  which  is  the  most  complete  democracy  in 
the  world.  It  is  the  most  perfect  exhibition  of 
what  President  Lincoln  called  "  government  of 
the  people  by  the  people  and  for  the  people." 

§  1.    Origin  of  the  Township. 
It  was  said  above  that  government  by  town- 
meeting  is  in  principle  the  oldest  form  of  gov- 


ORIGIN  OF  THE  TOWNSHIP 

ernment  known  in  the  world.  The  student  of 
ancient  history  is  familiar  with  the  comitia  of 
the  Romans  and  the  ecclesia  of  the  Town-meet- 
Greeks.  These  were  popular  assem-  gf^g^"  ^^^ 
blies,  held  in  those  soft  climates  in  the  Rome 
open  air,  usually  in  the  market-place,  —  the 
Roman  forum^  the  Greek  agora.  The  govern- 
ment carried  on  in  them  was  a  more  or  less 
qualified  democracy.  In  the  palmy  days  of 
Athens  it  was  a  pure  democracy.  The  assem- 
blies which  in  the  Athenian  market-place  de- 
clared war  against  Syracuse,  or  condemned 
Socrates  to  death,  were  quite  like  New  Eng- 
land town-meetings,  except  that  they  exercised 
greater  powers  because  there  was  no  state  gov- 
ernment above  them. 

The  principle  of  the  town-meeting,  however, 
is  older  than  Athens  or  Rome.  Long  before 
streets  were  built  or  fields  fenced  in,  men  wan- 
dered about  the  earth  hunting  for  food  in  fam- 
ily parties,  somewhat  as  lions  do  in  South 
Africa.  Such  family  groups  were  what  we  call 
clans ^  and  so  far  as  is  known  they 
were  the  earliest  form  in  which  civil 
society  appeared  on  the  earth.  Among  all  wan- 
dering or  partially  settled  tribes  the  clan  is  to 
be  found,  and  there  are  ample  opportunities  for 
studying  it  among  our  Indians  in  North  Amer- 
ica. The  clan  usually  has  a  chief  or  head-man, 
useful  mainly  as  a  leader  in  war-time ;    its  civil 

37 


THE  TOWNSHIP 

government,  crude  and  disorderly  enough,  is  in 
principle  a  pure  democracy. 

When  our  ancestors  first  became  acquainted 
with  American  Indians,  the  most  advanced 
tribes  lived  partly  by  hunting  and  fishing,  but 
partly  also  by  raising  Indian  corn  and  pump- 
kins. They  had  begun  to  live  in  wigwams 
grouped  together  in  small  villages  and  sur- 
rounded by  strong  rows  of  palisades  for  de- 
fence. Now  what  these  red  men  were  doing 
our  own  fair-haired  ancestors  in  northern  and 
central  Europe  had  been  doing  some  twenty 
centuries  earlier.  The  Scandinavians  and  Ger- 
mans, when  first  known  in  history,  had  made 
considerable  progress  in  exchanging  a  wander- 
ing for  a  settled  mode  of  life.  When  the  clan, 
instead  of  moving  from  place  to  place,  fixed 
upon  some  spot  for  a  permanent  residence,  a 
village  grew  up  there,  surrounded  by  a  belt  of 
waste  land,  or  somewhat  later  by  a  stockaded 
The  mark  Wall.  The  belt  of  land  was  called  a 
and  the  tun  ffiark,  and  the  wall  was  called  a  tun} 
Afterwards  the  enclosed  space  came  to  be  known 
sometimes  as  the  mark,  sometimes  as  the  tun  or 
town.  In  England  the  latter  name  prevailed. 
The  inhabitants  of  a  mark  or  town  were  a  sta- 
tionary clan.  It  was  customary  to  call  them  by 
the  clan  name,  as  for  example  "  the  Beorings  " 
or  "  the  Cressings  ;  "  then  the  town  would  be 

^  Pronounced  "toon." 
38 


ORIGIN  OF  THE  TOWNSHIP 

called  Barrington^  "  town  of  the  Beorings,"  or 
Cressing/iam,  "  home  of  the  Cressings."  Town 
names  of  this  sort,  with  which  the  map  of  Eng- 
land is  thickly  studded,  point  us  back  to  a  time 
when  the  town  was  supposed  to  be  the  station- 
ary home  of  a  clan. 

The  Old  English  town  had  its  tungemot,  or 
town-meeting,  in  which  "  by-laws  "  were  made 
and  other  important  business  transacted.  The 
principal  officers  were  the  "  reeve  "  ^j^^  ^^ 
or  head-man,  the  "  beadle  "  or  mes-  English 
senger,  and  the  "  tithing-man "  or  °^"^  '^ 
petty  constable.  These  officers  seem  at  first  to 
have  been  elected  by  the  people,  but  after  a 
while,  as  great  lordships  grew  up,  usurping  ju- 
risdiction over  the  land,  the  lord's  steward  and 
bailiff  came  to  supersede  the  reeve  and  beadle. 
After  the  Norman  Conquest  the  townships,  thus 
brought  under  the  sway  of  great  lords,  came  to 
be  generally  known  by  the  French  name  of 
manors  or  "  dwelling  places."  Much  might  be 
said  about  this  change,  but  here  it  is  enough 
for  us  to  bear  in  mind  that  a  manor  was  essen- 
tially a  township  in  which  the  chief  executive 
officers  were   directly  responsible   to    ^, 

1  1  The  manor 

the   lord  rather  than  to  the  people. 
It  would  be  wrong,  however,  to  suppose  that 
the  manors  entirely  lost  their  self-government. 
Even   the   ancient    town-meeting    survived    in 
them,  in  a  fragmentary  way,  in  several  interest- 

29 


THE  TOWNSHIP 

ing  assemblies,  of  which  the  most  interesting 
were  the  court  leet,  for  the  election  of  certain 
officers  and  the  trial  of  petty  offences,  and 
the  court  baron,  which  was  much  like  a  town- 
meeting. 

Still  more  of  the  old  self-government  would 
doubtless  have  survived  in  the  institutions  of 
the  manor  if  it  had  not  been  provided 
for  in  another  way.  The  parish  was 
older  than  the  manor.  After  the  English  had 
been  converted  to  Christianity  local  churches 
were  gradually  set  up  all  over  the  country,  and 
districts  called  parishes  were  assigned  for  the 
ministrations  of  the  priests.  Now  a  parish  gen- 
erally coincided  in  area  with  a  township,  or 
sometimes  with  a  group  of  two  or  three  town- 
ships. In  the  old  heathen  times  each  town 
seems  to  have  had  its  sacred  place  or  shrine 
consecrated  to  some  local  deity,  and  it  was  a 
favourite  policy  with  the  Roman  missionary 
priests  to  purify  the  old  shrine  and  turn  it  into 
a  church.  In  this  way  the  township  at  the  same 
time  naturally  became  the  parish. 

As  we  find  it  in  later  times,  both  before  and 

since  the  founding  of  English  colonies  in  North 

Townshi        America,  the  township  in  England  Is 

manor,  and  likely  to  be  both  a  manor  and  a  par- 
parish  ■    1  T-<  ■      ■        1 

ish.    J^or  some  purposes  it  is  the  one, 
for  some  purposes  it  is  the  other.    The  towns- 
folk may  be  regarded  as  a  group  of  tenants  of 
40 


ORIGIN  OF  THE  TOWNSHIP 

the  lord's  manor,  or  as  a  group  of  parishioners 
of  the  local  church.  In  the  latter  aspect  the 
parish  retained  much  of  the  self-government  of 
the  ancient  town.  The  business  with  which  the 
lord  was  entitled  to  meddle  was  strictly  limited, 
and  all  other  business  was  transacted  in  the 
"vestry-meeting,"  which  was  practi-  The  vestry- 
cally  the  old  town-meeting  under  a  meeting 
new  name.  In  the  course  of  the  thirteenth 
century  we  find  that  the  parish  had  acquired 
the  right  of  taxing  itself  for  church  purposes. 
Money  needed  for  the  church  was  supplied  in 
the  form  of  "  church-rates  "  voted  by  the  rate- 
payers themselves  in  the  vestry-meeting,  so 
called  because  it  was  originally  held  in  a  room 
of  the  church  in  which  vestments  were  kept. 

The  officers  of  the  parish  were  the  constable, 
the  parish  and  vestry  clerks,^  the  beadle,^  the 
"  waywardens  "  or  surveyors  of  high-    paHsh  offi- 
ways,  the  "  haywards  "  or  fence-view-    ""^ 
ers,  the  "  common  drivers,"  the  collectors  of 
taxes,  and  at  the  beginning  of  the  seventeenth 

^  Of  these  two  officers  the  vestry  clerk  is  the  counterpart 
of  the  New  England  town-clerk. 

^  Originally  a  messenger  or  crier,  the  beadle  came  to  as- 
sume some  of  the  functions  of  the  tithing-man  or  petty  con- 
stable, such  as  keeping  order  in  church,  punishing  petty 
offenders,  waiting  on  the  clergyman,  etc.  In  New  England 
towns  there  were  formerly  officers  called  tithing-men,  who 
kept  order  in  church,  arrested  tipplers,  loafers,  and  Sabbath- 
breakers,  etc. 

41 


THE  TOWNSHIP 

century  overseers  of  the  poor  were  added. 
There  were  also  churchwardens,  usually  two 
for  each  parish.  Their  duties  were  primarily  to 
take  care  of  the  church  property,  assess  the  rates, 
and  call  the  vestry-meetings.  They  also  acted 
as  overseers  of  the  poor,  and  thus  in  several 
ways  remind  one  of  the  selectmen  of  New  Eng- 
land. The  parish  officers  were  all  elected  by 
the  ratepayers  assembled  in  vestry-meeting,  ex- 
cept the  common  driver  and  hayward,  who  were 
elected  by  the  same  ratepayers  assembled  in 
court  leet.  Besides  electing  parish  officers  and 
granting  the  rates,  the  vestry-meeting  could 
enact  by-laws ;  and  all  ratepayers  had  an  equal 
voice  in  its  deliberations. 

During  the  last  two  centuries  the  constitution 
of  the  English  parish  has  undergone  some  modi- 
fications which  need  not  here  concern  us.  The 
Puritans  who  settled  in  New  England  had  grown 
The  transi-  ^P  ^ndcr  such  parish  government  as 
tion  from        }s  here  described,  and  they  were  used 

England  to  ,  .  ,  •    i  n     j 

New  Eng-  to  hcarmg  the  parish  called,  on  some 
^^""^  occasions  and  for  some  purposes,  a 

township.  If  we  remember  now  that  the  earliest 
New  England  towns  were  founded  by  church 
congregations,  led  by  their  pastors,  we  can  see 
how  town  government  in  New  England  origi- 
nated. It  was  simply  the  English  parish  gov- 
ernment brought  into  a  new  country  and  adapted 
to  the  new  situation.  Part  of  this  new  situation 
42 


ORIGIN  OF  THE  TOWNSHIP 

consisted  in  the  fact  that  the  lords  of  the  manor 
were  left  behind.  There  was  no  longer  any 
occasion  to  distinguish  between  the  township 
as  a  manor  and  the  township  as  a  parish ;  and 
so,  as  the  three  names  had  all  lived  on  together, 
side  by  side,  in  England,  it  was  now  the  oldest 
and  most  generally  descriptive  name,  "  town- 
ship," that  survived,  and  has  come  into  use 
throughout  a  great  part  of  the  United  States. 
The  townsfolk  went  on  making  by-laws,  voting 
supplies  of  public  money,  and  electing  their 
magistrates  in  America,  after  the  fashion  with 
which  they  had  for  ages  been  familiar  in  Eng- 
land. Some  of  their  offices  and  customs  were 
of  hoary  antiquity.  If  age  gives  respectability, 
the  office  of  constable  may  vie  with  that  of 
king ;  and  if  the  annual  town-meeting  is  usu- 
ally held  in  the  month  of  March,  it  is  because 
in  days  of  old,  long  before  Magna  Charta  was 
thought  of,  the  rules  and  regulations  for  the 
village  husbandry  were  discussed  and  adopted 
in  time  for  the  spring  planting. 

To  complete  our  sketch  of  the  origin  of  the 
New  England  town,  one  point  should  here  be 
briefly  mentioned  in  anticipation  of  what  will 
have  to  be  said  hereafter  ;  but  it  is  a  point  of  so 
much  importance  that  we  need  not  mind  a  little 
repetition  in  stating  it. 

We  have  seen  what  a  great  part  taxation  plays 
in  the  business  of  government,  and  we  shall  pre- 
43 


THE  TOWNSHIP 

sently  have  to  treat  of  county,  state,  and  fed- 
eral governments,  all  of  them  wider  in  their 
BuUdingup  sphere  than  the  town  government.  In 
states  j-j^g  course  of  history,  as  nations  have 

gradually  been  built  up,  these  wider  governments 
have  been  apt  to  absorb  or  supplant  and  crush 
the  narrower  governments,  such  as  the  parish 
or  township  ;  and  this  process  has  too  often  been 
destructive  to  political  freedom.  Such  a  result 
is,  of  course,  disastrous  to  everybody  ;  and  if  it 
were  unavoidable,  it  would  be  better  that  great 
national  governments  need  never  be  formed. 
But  it  is  not  unavoidable.  There  is  one  way  of 
escaping  it,  and  that  is  to  give  the  little  govern- 
ment of  the  town  some  real  share  in  making  up 
the  great  government  of  the  state.  That  is  not 
an  easy  thing  to  do,  as  is  shown  by  the  fact  that 
most  peoples  have  failed  in  the  attempt.  The 
people  who  speak  the  English  language  have 
been  the  most  successful,  and  the  device  by 
which  they  have  overcome  the  difficulty  is  Re- 

Represen-  PRESENTATION.     The    tOWn    Sends     tO 

tation  ^i^g  wider  government  a  delegation  of 

persons  who  can  represent  the  town  and  its  peo- 
ple. They  can  speak  for  the  town,  and  have  a 
voice  in  the  framing  of  laws  and  imposition  of 
taxes  by  the  wider  government. 

In  English  townships  there  has  been  from 
time  immemorial  a  system  of  representation. 
Long  before  Alfred's  time  there  were  "  shire- 

44 


ORIGIN  OF  THE  TOWNSHIP 

motes,"  or  what  were  afterwards  called  county 
meetings,  and  to  these  each  town  sent  its  reeve 
and  "four  discreet  men  "as  represen-    ^,. 

.  -^  Snire-motes 

tatives.  Thus  to  a  certain  extent  the 
wishes  of  the  townsfolk  could  be  brought  to  bear 
upon  county  affairs.  By  and  by  this  method  was 
applied  on  a  much  wider  scale.  It  was  applied  to 
the  whole  kingdom,  so  that  the  people  of  all  its 
towns  and  parishes  succeeded  in  securing  a  repre- 
sentation of  their  interests  in  an  elective  national 
council  or  House  of  Commons.  This  great  work 
was  accomplished  in  the  thirteenth  Eari  Simon's 
century  by  Simon  de  Montfort,  Earl  Parliament 
of  Leicester,  and  was  completed  by  Edward  I. 
Simon's  Parliament,  the  first  in  which  the  Com- 
mons were  fully  represented,  was  assembled  in 
1265  ;  and  the  date  of  Edward's  Parliament, 
which  has  been  called  the  Model  Parliament, 
was  12.95.  These  dates  have  as  much  interest 
for  Americans  as  for  Englishmen,  because  they 
mark  the  first  definite  establishment  of  that 
grand  system  of  representative  government 
which  we  are  still  carrying  on  at  our  various 
state  capitals  and  at  Washington.  For  its  hum- 
ble beginnings  we  have  to  look  back  to  the 
"  reeve  and  four  "  sent  by  the  ancient  townships 
to  the  county  meetings. 

The  English  township  or  parish  was  thus  at 
an  early  period  the  "  unit  of  representation  "  in 
the  government  of  the  county.     It  was  also  a 

45 


THE  TOWNSHIP 

district  for  the  assessment  and  collection  of  the 
national  taxes  ;  in  each  parish  the  assessment 
Townshi  as  ^^^  made  by  a  board  of  assessors 
unit  of  re-      choscn  by  popular  vote.  These  essen- 

presentation  ...  .        ,  i      i  •    , 

tial  pomts  reappear  m  the  early  history 
of  New  England.  The  township  was  not  only 
a  self-governing  body,  but  it  was  the  "  unit  of 
representation  "  in  the  colonial  legislature,  or 
"  General  Court ;  "  and  the  assessment  of  taxes, 
whether  for  town  purposes  or  for  state  purposes, 
was  made  by  assessors  elected  by  the  townsfolk. 
In  its  beginnings  and  fundamentals  our  political 
liberty  did  not  originate  upon  American  soil, 
but  was  brought  hither  by  our  forefathers  the 
first  settlers.  They  brought  their  political  insti- 
tutions with  them  as  naturally  as  they  brought 
their  language  and  their  social  customs. 

Observe  now  that  the  township  is  to  be  re- 
garded in  two  lights.  It  must  be  considered  not 
only  in  itself,  but  as  part  of  a  greater  whole. 
We  began  by  describing  it  as  a  self-governing 
body,  but  in  order  to  complete  our  sketch  we 
were  obliged  to  speak  of  it  as  a  body  which  has 
a  share  in  the  government  of  the  state  and  the 
nation.  The  latter  aspect  is  as  important  as  the 
former.  If  the  people  of  a  town  had  only  the 
power  of  managing  their  local  affairs,  without 
the  power  of  taking  part  in  the  management  of 
national  affairs,  their  political  freedom  would  be 
far  from  complete.  In  Russia,  for  example,  the 
46 


ORIGIN  OF  THE  TOWNSHIP 

larger  part  of  the  vast  population  is  resident  in 
village  communities  which  have  to  a  consider- 
able extent  the  power  of  managing  their  local 
affairs.  Such  a  village  community  is  called  a 
mir,  and  like  the  English  township  it   _^   „    . 

/  °  ,  .  The  Russian 

is  lineally  descended  from  the  station-  vuiage  com- 
ary  clan.  The  people  of  the  Russian  ^pS^^eThi 
mir  hold  meetings  in  which  they  elect  ^^  national 
sundry  local  officers,  distribute  the 
burden  of  local  taxation,  make  regulations  con- 
cerning local  husbandry  and  police,  and  transact 
other  business  which  need  not  here  concern  us. 
But  they  have  no  share  in  the  national  govern- 
ment, and  are  obliged  to  obey  laws  which  they 
have  no  voice  in  making,  and  pay  taxes  assessed 
upon  them  without  their  consent ;  and  accord- 
ingly we  say  with  truth  that  the  Russian  people 
do  not  possess  political  freedom.  One  reason 
for  this  has  doubtless  been  that  in  times  past  the 
Russian  territory  was  the  great  frontier  battle- 
ground between  civilized  Europe  and  the  wild 
hordes  of  western  Asia,  and  the  people  who 
lived  for  ages  on  that  turbulent  frontier  were 
subjected  to  altogether  too  much  conquest. 
They  have  tasted  too  little  of  civil  government 
and  too  much  of  military  government,  —  a  pen- 
nyworth of  wholesome  bread  to  an  intolerable 
deal  of  sack.  The  early  English,  in  their  snug 
little  corner  of  the  world,  belted  by  salt  sea,  were 
able  to  develop  their  civil  government  with  less 
47 


THE  TOWNSHIP 

destructive  interference.  They  made  a  sound 
and  healthful  beginning  when  they  made  the 
township  the  "  unit  of  representation  "  for  the 
county.  Then  the  township,  besides  managing 
its  own  affairs,  began  to  take  part  in  the  man- 
agement of  wider  affairs. 


48 


Ill 

THE    COUNTY 

§   I.  The  County  in  its  Beginnings. 

IT  is  now  time  for  us  to  treat  of  the  county, 
and  we  may  as  well  begin  by  considering 
its  origin.  In  treating  of  the  township  we 
began  by  sketching  it  in  its  fullest  development, 
as  seen  in  New  England.  With  the  county  we 
shall  find  it  helpful  to  pursue  a  different  method 
and  start  at  the  beginning. 

If  we  look  at  the  maps  of  the  states  which 
make  up  our  Union,  we  see  that  they  are  all 
divided  into  counties  (except  that  in  Louisiana 
the  corresponding  divisions  are  named  parishes). 
The  map  of  England  shows  that  country  as 
similarly  divided  into  counties. 

If  we  ask  why  this  is  so,  some  people  will 
tell  us  that  it  is  convenient,  for  purposes  of 
administration,  to  have  a  state,  or  a    „^.    ^ 

.  .  ,  Why  do 

kingdom,  divided  into  areas  that  are    we  have 
larger    than   single   towns.    There  is 
much  truth  in  this.    It  is  convenient.    If  it  were 
not  so,  counties  would  not  have  survived,  so  as 
to  make  a  part  of  our  modern  maps.    Never- 
theless, this  is  not  the  historic  reason  why  we 

49 


THE  COUNTY 

have  the  particular  kind  of  subdivisions  known 
as  counties.  We  have  them  because  our  fathers 
and  grandfathers  had  them  ;  and  thus,  if  we 
would  find  out  the  true  reason,  we  may  as  well 
go  back  to  the  ancient  times  when  our  fore- 
fathers were  establishing  themselves  in  Eng- 
land. 

We  have  seen  how  the  clan  of  our  barbarous 
ancestors,  when  it  became  stationary,  was  es- 
tablished as  the  town  or  township.  But  in  those 
early  times  clans  were  generally  united  more  or 
less  closely  into  tribes.  Among  all  primitive  or 
barbarous  races  of  men,  so  far  as  we  can  make 
Clans  and  out,  society  is  Organized  in  tribes,  and 
tribes  e.2ich.  tribe  is  made  up  of  a  number  of 

clans  or  family  groups.  Now  when  our  Eng- 
lish forefathers  conquered  Britain  they  settled 
there  as  clans  and  also  as  tribes.  The  clans 
became  townships,  and  the  tribes  became  shires 
or  counties  ;  that  is  to  say,  the  names  were  ap- 
plied first  to  the  people  and  afterwards  to  the 
land  they  occupied.  A  few  of  the  oldest  county 
names  in  England  still  show  this  plainly.  Essex, 
Middlesex,  and  Sussex  were  originally  "  East 
Saxons,"  "  Middle  Saxons,"  and  "  South  Sax- 
ons ;  "  and  on  the  eastern  coast  two  tribes  of 
Angles  were  distinguished  as  "  North  folk  " 
and  "South  folk,"  or  Norfolk  and  Suffolk. 
When  you  look  on  the  map  and  see  the  town 
o{  IckUngham  in  the  county  o{  Suffolk,  it  means 

50 


THE  COUNTY  IN  ITS  BEGINNINGS 

that  this  place  was  once  known  as  the  "  home  " 
of  the  "  Icklings  "  or  "  children  of  Ickel,"  a 
clan  which  formed  part  of  the  tribe  of  "  South 
folk." 

In  those  days  there  was  no  such  thing  as  a 
Kingdom   of   England ;  there  were   only  these 
groups  of  tribes  living  side  by  side.    The  English 
Each     tribe    had   its    leader,    whose   "f  7.  li^e 

■'  the  Ameri- 

title  was  ealdorman^  or  "  elder  man."  can,  grew 
After  a  while,  as  some  tribes  increased  union  of  ^ 
in  size  and  power,  their  ealdormen  ^^^  ^'^^"^" 
took  the  title  of  kings.  The  little  kingdoms 
coincided  sometimes  with  a  single  shire,  some- 
times with  two  or  more  shires.  Thus  there  was 
a  kingdom  of  Kent,  and  the  North  and  South 
Folk  were  combined  in  a  kingdom  of  East 
Anglia.  In  course  of  time  numbers  of  shires 
combined  into  larger  kingdoms,  such  as  North- 
umbria,  Mercia,  and  the  West  Saxons ;  and 
finally  the  king  of  the  West  Saxons  became  king 
of  all  England,  and  the  several  shires  became 
subordinate  parts  or  "shares"  of  the  kingdom. 
In  England,  therefore,  the  shires  are  older  than 
the  nation.  The  shires  were  not  made  bv  divid- 
ing the  nation,  but  the  nation  was  made  by 
uniting  the  shires.  The  English  nation,  like 
the  American,  grew  out  of  the  union  of  little 
states  that  had  once  been  independent  of  one 

^  The  pronunciation  was  probably  sometliing  like  yazvl- 
dorman. 

51 


THE  COUNTY 

another,  but  had  many  interests  in  common. 
For  not  less  than  three  hundred  years  after  all 
En2:land  had  been  united  under  one  king,  these 
shires  retained  their  self-government  almost  as 
completely  as  the  several  states  of  the  American 
Union. ^  A  few  words  about  their  government 
will  not  be  wasted,  for  they  will  help  to  throw 
light  upon  some  things  that  still  torm  a  part  of 
our  political  and  social  life. 

The  shire  was  governed  by  the  shire-mote 
{i.e.  "meeting"),  which  was  a  representative 
body.  Lords  of  lands,  including  ab- 
eaidonnan,'  bots  and  pHors,  attended  it,  as  well  as 
and  sheriiF  ^j^^  reeve  and  four  selected  men  from 
each  township.  There  were  thus  the  germs  of 
both  the  kind  of  representation  that  is  seen  in 
the  House  of  Lords  and  the  much  more  per- 
fect kind  that  is  seen  in  the  House  of  Com- 
mons. After  a  while,  as  cities  and  boroughs 
CTrew  In  importance,  they  sent  representative 
burghers  to  the  shire-mote.  There  were  two 
presiding  officers  :  one  was  the  ealdorman,  who 
was  now  appointed  bv  the  king  ;  the  other  was 
the  shire-reeve  {i.e.  "sheriff"),  who  was  still 
elected  by  the  people  and  2:enerally  held  office 
for  life. 

This  shire-mote  was  both  a  legislative  bodv 
and  a  court  of  justice.  It  not  only  made  laws 
for  the  shire,  but  it  tried  civil  and  criminal 
^  Chalmers,  Local  Gcvcrnmcnt,  p.  90. 


THE  COUNTY  IN  ITS  BEGINNINGS 

causes.  After  the  Norman  Conquest  some 
changes  occurred.  The  shire  now  began  to  be 
called  bv  the  French  name  "  countv,"  because 
of  its  analogy  to  the  small  pieces  of  territory  on 
the  Continent  that  were  governed  by  "counts."^ 
The  shire-mote  became  known  as  tne  The  county 
county  court,  but  cases  coming  before  ""^ 
it  were  tried  by  the  king's  justices  in  eyre,  or 
circuit  judges,  who  went  about  from  county  to 
county  to  preside  oyer  the  judicial  work.  The 
office  of  ealdorman  became  extinct.  The  sheriff 
was  no  longer  elected  by  the  people  for  life, 
but  appointed  by  the  king  for  the  term  of  one 
year.  This  kept  him  strictly  responsible  to  the 
kingr.  It  was  the  sheriff's  duty  to  see  that  the 
county's  share  of  the  national  taxes  was  duly 
collected  and  paid  oyer  to  the  national  treasury. 
The  sheriff  also  summoned  juries  and  enforced 
the  judgments  of  the  courts,  and  if  he  met  with 
resistance  in  so  doing  he  was  authorized  to  call 
out  a  force  of  men,  known  as  the  posse  comitatus 
(/.  e.  "power  of  the  county"),  and  overcome 
all  opposition.  Another  count}'  officer  was  the 
coroner,  or  croivner,-  so  called  because 

••  •  Airi»  •  \i  '^^^  coroner 

onginally  (in  Alrred  s   time)  he  was 
appointed  by  the  king,  and  was  especially  the 

^  Originally  comites,  or  **  companions"  of  the  Hng. 

'  This  form  of  the  word,  sometimes  supposed  to  be  a  vul- 
garism, is  as  correct  as  the  other.  See  Skeat,  Eiym.  Dict.^ 
s.  V. 

53 


THE  COUNTY 

crown  officer  in  the  county.  Since  the  time  of 
Edward  I.,  however,  coroners  have  been  elected 
by  the  people.  Originally  coroners  held  small 
courts  of  inquiry  upon  cases  of  wreckage,  de- 
structive fires,  or  sudden  death,  but  in  course 
of  time  their  jurisdiction  became  confined  to  the 
last-named  class  of  cases.  If  a  death  occurred 
under  circumstances  in  any  way  mysterious  or 
likely  to  awaken  suspicion,  it  was  the  business 
of  the  coroner,  assisted  by  not  less  than  twelve 
jurors  {i.  e.  "sworn  men  "),  to  hold  an  inquest 
for  the  purpose  of  ascertaining  the  cause  of 
death.  The  coroner  could  compel  the  attend- 
ance of  witnesses  and  order  a  medical  examina- 
tion of  the  body,  and  if  there  were  sufficient 
evidence  to  charge  any  person  with  murder  or 
manslaughter,  the  coroner  could  have  such  per- 
son arrested  and  committed  for  trial. 

Another  important  county  officer  was  the 
justice  of  the  peace.  Originally  six  were  ap- 
justices  of  pointed  by  the  Crown  in  each  county, 
the  peace  ^^|.  \^  j^tcr  timcs  any  number  might 
be  appointed.  The  office  was  created  by  a  se- 
ries of  statutes  in  the  reign  of  Edward  III.,  in 
order  to  put  a  stop  to  the  brigandage  which 
still  flourished  in  England ;  it  was  a  common 
practice  for  robbers  to  seize  persons  and  hold 
them  for  ransom.-^    By  the  last  of  these  statutes, 

^  Longman's  Life  and  Times  of  Edward  III.,  vol.  i. 
p.  301. 

54 


THE  COUNTY  IN  ITS  BEGINNINGS 

in  1362,  the  justices  of  the  peace  in  each  county- 
were  to  hold  a  court  four  times  in  the  year. 
The  powers  of  this  court,  which  came  to  be 
known  as  the  Quarter  Sessions,  were  from  time 
to  time  increased  by  act  of  Parliament,  until  it 
quite  supplanted  the  old  county  court.  The  Quarter 
In  modern  times  the  Quarter  Sessions  Sessions 
has  become  an  administrative  body  quite  as 
much  as  a  court.  The  justices,  who  receive  no 
salary,  hold  office  for  life,  or  during  good  be- 
haviour. They  appoint  the  chief  constable  of 
the  county,  who  appoints  the  police.  They 
also  take  part  in  the  supervision  of  highways 
and  bridges,  asylums  and  prisons.  Since  the 
reign  of  Henry  VI I L,  the  English  county  has 
had  an  officer  known  as  the  lord-lieu-  The  lord- 
tenant,  who  was  once  leader  of  the  iJ^utenant 
county  militia,  but  whose  functions  to-day  are 
those  of  keeper  of  the  records  and  principal 
justice  of  the  peace. 

During  the  past  five  hundred  years  the  Eng- 
lish county  has  gradually  sunk  from  a  self-gov- 
erning community  into  an  administrative  dis- 
trict ;  and  in  recent  times  its  boundaries  have 
been  so  crossed  and  criscrossed  with  those  of 
other  administrative  areas,  such  as  those  of 
school-boards,  sanitary  boards,  etc.,  that  very 
little  of  the  old  county  is  left  in  recognizable 
shape.    Most  of  this  change  has  been  effected 


55 


THE  COUNTY 

since  the  Tudor  period.  The  first  English  set- 
tlers in  America  were  familiar  with  the  county 
as  a  district  for  the  administration  of  justice,  and 
they  brought  with  them  coroners,  sheriffs,  and 
Beginnings  quartcr  sessions.  In  1635  ^^^  Gen- 
cwt^'  ^^^^  Court  of  Massachusetts  appointed 
counties  four  towHS  —  Boston,  Cambridge,  Sa- 
lem, and  Ipswich  —  as  places  where  courts 
should  be  held  quarterly.  In  1643  ^^^  colony, 
which  then  included  as  much  of  New  Hamp- 
shire as  was  settled,  was  divided  into  four 
"  shires,"  —  Suffolk,  Essex,  Middlesex,  and 
Norfolk,  the  latter  lying  then  to  the  northward 
and  including  the  New  Hampshire  towns.  The 
militia  was  then  organized,  perhaps  without 
consciousness  of  the  analogy,  after  a  very  old 
English  fashion;  the  militia  of  each  town 
formed  a  company,  and  the  companies  of  the 
shire  formed  a  regiment.  The  county  was  or- 
ganized from  the  beginning  as  a  judicial  dis- 
trict, with  its  court-house,  jail,  and  sheriff. 
After  1697  the  court,  held  by  the  justices  of 
the  peace,  was  called  the  Court  of  General  Ses- 
sions. It  could  try  criminal  causes  not  involv- 
ing the  penalty  of  death  or  banishment,  and 
civil  causes  in  which  the  value  at  stake  was  less 
than  forty  shillings.  It  also  had  control  over 
highways  going  from  town  to  town  ;  and  it  ap- 
portioned the  county  taxes  among  the  several 

56 


MODERN  COUNTY  IN  MASSACHUSETTS 

towns.    The  justices  and  sheriff  were  appointed 
by  the  governor,  as  in  England  by  the  king. 

§   2.  The  Modern  County  in  Massachusetts. 

The  modern  county  system  of  Massachusetts 
may  now  be  very  briefly  described.  The  county, 
Hke  the  town,  is  a  corporation  ;  it  can  hold  pro- 
perty and  sue  or  be  sued.  It  builds  the  court- 
house and  jail,  and  keeps  them  in  repair.  The 
town  in  which  these  buildings  are  placed  is 
called,  as  in  England,  the  shire  town. 

In  each  county  there  are  three  commis- 
sioners, elected  by  the  people.  Their  term  of 
service  is  three  years,  and  one  goes  out  each 
year.  These  commissioners  represent  the  county 
in  lawsuits,  as  the  selectmen  represent  the 
town.  They  "  apportion  the  county  county 
taxes  among  the  towns  ; "  "  lay  out, 
alter,  and  discontinue  highways  within  the 
county ; "  "  have  charge  of  houses  of  correc- 
tion ;  "  and  erect  and  keep  in  repair  the  county 
buildings.^ 

The  revenues  of  the  county  are  derived  partly 
from  taxation  and  partly  from  the  payment  of 
fines  and  costs  in  the  courts.    These    county 
revenues  are  received  and  disbursed    '^'■^^^"'■" 
by  the  county  treasurer,  who  is  elected  by  the 
people  for  a  term  of  three  years. 

The   Superior  Court  of  the   state   holds  at 

*  Martin's  Civil  Government,  ■p.  igj. 

57 


com- 
missioners 


THE  COUNTY 

least  two  sessions  annually  in  each  county,  and 

tries  civil  and  criminal  causes.    There  is  also  in 

each  county  a  probate  court  with  jurisdiction 

over  all  matters  relating  to  wills,  ad- 
Courts  ...  -  °      ,  , 

mmistration  or  estates,  and  appomt- 

ment  of  guardians  ;  it  also  acts  as  a  court  of 
insolvency.  The  custody  of  wills  and  docu- 
ments relating  to  the  business  of  this  court  is 
in  the  hands  of  an  officer  known  as  the  register 
of  probate,  who  is  elected  by  the  people  for  a 
term  of  five  years. 

To  preserve  the  records  of  all  land-titles  and 
transfers  of  land  within  the  county,  all  deeds 
Shire  town  ^^^  Hiortgagcs  are  registered  in  an 
and  court-  officc  in  the  shire  town,  usually  within 
or  attached  to  the  court-house.  The 
register  of  deeds  is  an  officer  elected  by  the 
people  for  a  term  of  three  years.  In  counties 
where  there  is  much  business  there  may  be 
more  than  one. 

Justices  of  the  peace  are  appointed  by  the 
governor  for  a  term  of  seven  years,  and  the  ap- 
justicesof  pointment  may  be  renewed.  Their 
the  peace  functions  havc  been  greatly  curtailed, 
and  now  amount  to  little  more  than  administer- 
ing oaths,  and  in  some  cases  issuing  warrants 
and  taking  bail.  They  may  join  persons  in  mar- 
riage, and,  when  specially  commissioned  as 
"  trial  justices,"  have  criminal  jurisdiction  over 
sundry  petty  offences. 

58 


MODERN  COUNTY  IN  MASSACHUSETTS 

The  sheriff  is  elected  by  the  people  for  a 
term  of  three  years.  He  may  appoint  deputies, 
for  whom  he  is  responsible,  to  assist  him  in  his 
work.  He  must  attend  all  county  courts,  and 
the  meetings  of  the  county  commissioners  when- 
ever required.    He  must  inflict,  either    _,     ,    .^ 

i  The  sheriri 

personally  or  by  deputy,  the  sentence 
of  the  court,  whether  it  be  fine,  imprisonment, 
or  death.  He  is  responsible  for  the  preserva- 
tion of  the  peace  within  the  county,  and  to  this 
end  must  pursue  criminals  and  may  arrest  dis- 
orderly persons.  If  he  meets  with  resistance  he 
may  call  out  the  posse  comitatus ;  if  the  resist- 
ance grows  into  insurrection  he  may  apply  to 
the  governor  and  obtain  the  aid  of  the  state 
militia ;  if  the  insurrection  proves  too  formid- 
able to  be  thus  dealt  with,  the  governor  may  in 
his  behalf  apply  to  the  President  of  the  United 
States  for  aid  from  the  regular  army.  In  this 
way  the  force  that  may  be  drawn  upon,  if  ne- 
cessary, for  the  suppression  of  disorder  in  a  sin- 
gle locality,  is  practically  unlimited  and  irresist- 
ible. 

We  have  now  obtained  a  clear  outline  view 
of  the  township  and  county  in  themselves  and 
in  their  relation  to  one  another,  with  an  occa- 
sional glimpse  of  their  relation  to  the  state  ;  in 
so  far,  at  least,  as  such  a  view  can  be  gained 
from  a  reference  to  the  history  of  England  and 
of  Massachusetts.    We  must  next  trace  the  de- 

59 


THE  COUNTY 

velopment  of  local  government  in  other  parts 
of  the  United  States  ;  and  in  doing  so  we  can 
advance  at  somewhat  quicker  pace,  not  because 
our  subject  becomes  in  any  wise  less  important 
or  less  interesting,  but  because  we  have  already 
marked  out  the  ground  and  said  things  of  gen- 
eral application  which  will  not  need  to  be  said 
over  again. 

§  3.   The  Old  Virginia  County. 

By  common  consent  of  historians,  the  two 
most  distinctive  and  most  characteristic  lines 
of  development  which  English  forms  of  gov- 
ernment have  followed,  in  propagating  them- 
selves throughout  the  United  States,  are  the 
two  lines  that  have  led  through  New  England 
on  the  one  hand  and  through  Virginia  on  the 
other.  We  have  seen  what  shape  local  govern- 
ment assumed  in  New  England  ;  let  us  now 
observe  what  shape  it  assumed  in  the  Old  Do- 
minion. 

The  first  point  to  be  noticed  in  the  early  set- 
tlement of  Virginia  is  that  people  did  not  live 
so  near  together  as  in  New  England.  This  was 
because  tobacco,  cultivated  on  large  estates, 
was  a  source  of  wealth.  Tobacco  drew  settlers 
Virginia  ^°  Virginia  as  in  later  days  gold  drew 
sparsely  scttlcrs  to   California  and   Australia. 

They  came  not  in  organized  groups 
or  congregations,  but  as  a  multitude  of  individ- 
60 


THE  OLD  VIRGINIA  COUNTY 

uals.  Land  was  granted  to  individuals,  and 
sometimes  these  grants  were  of  enormous  ex- 
tent. "  John  Boiling,  who  died  in  1757,  left  an 
estate  of  40,000  acres,  and  this  is  not  mentioned 
as  an  extraordinary  amount  of  land  for  one  man 
to  own,"  ^  From  an  early  period  it  was  cus- 
tomary to  keep  these  great  estates  together  by 
entailing  them,  and  this  continued  until  entails 
were  abolished  in  1776  through  the  influence  of 
Thomas  Jefferson. 

A  glance  at  the  map  of  Virginia  shows  to 
what  a  remarkable  degree  it  is  intersected  by 
navigable  rivers.  This  fact  made  it  possible  for 
plantations,  even  at  a  long  distance  Absence  of 
from  the  coast,  to  have  each  its  own  ^^"^^^ 
private  wharf,  where  a  ship  from  England  could 
unload  its  cargo  of  tools,  cloth,  or  furniture,  and 
receive  a  cargo  of  tobacco  in  return.  As  the 
planters  were  thus  supplied  with  most  of  the 
necessaries  of  life,  there  was  no  occasion  for  the 
kind  of  trade  that  builds  up  towns.  Even  in 
comparatively  recent  times  the  development  of 
town  life  in  Virginia  has  been  very  slow.  In 
1880,  out  of  246  cities  and  towns  in  the  United 
States  with  a  population  exceeding  10,000,  there 
were  only  six  in  Virginia. 

The  cultivation  of  tobacco  upon  large  estates 
caused  a  great  demand  for  cheap  labour,  and 

^  Edward  Channing,  Town  and  County   Governmeiit,  in 
Johns  Hopkins  University  Studies,  vol.  ii.  p.  467. 
61 


THE  COUNTY 

this  was  supplied  partly  by  bringing  negro  slaves 
from  Africa,  partly  by  bringing  criminals  from 
English  jails.  The  latter  were  sold  into  slavery 
for  a  limited  term  of  years,  and  were 
known  as  "  indentured  white  ser- 
vants." So  great  was  the  demand  for  labour  that 
it  became  customary  to  kidnap  poor  friendless 
wretches  on  the  streets  of  seaport  towns  in  Eng- 
land and  ship  them  off  to  Virginia  to  be  sold 
into  servitude.  At  first  these  white  servants 
were  more  numerous  than  the  negroes,  but  be- 
fore the  end  of  the  seventeenth  century  the 
blacks  had  come  to  be  much  the  more  numer- 
ous. 

In  this  rural  community  the  owners  of  plan- 
tations came  from  the  same  classes  of  society  as 
the  settlers  of  New  England  ;  they  were  for  the 
most  part  country  squires  and  yeo- 

SoClal  pOSl-  ^  1'1*-NT  T-^  1 

tionofset-      men.     But  while    m    New   England 
^'^^  there  was  no  lower  class  of  society 

sharply  marked  off  from  the  upper,  on  the 
other  hand  in  Virginia  there  was  an  insurmount- 
able distinction  between  the  owners  of  planta- 
tions and  the  so-called  "mean  whites"  or 
"white  trash."  This  class  was  originally  formed 
of  men  and  women  who  had  been  indentured 
white  servants,  and  was  increased  by  such  shift- 
less people  as  now  and  then  found  their  way  to 
the  colony,  but  could  not  win  estates  or  obtain 
social  recognition.  With  such  a  sharp  division 
62 


THE  OLD  VIRGINIA  COUNTY 

between  classes,  an  aristocratic  type  of  society- 
was  developed  in  Virginia  as  naturally  as  a 
democratic  type  was  developed  in  New  England. 
In  Virginia  there  were  no  town-meetings. 
The  distances  between  plantations  cooperated 
with  the  distinction  between  classes  to  prevent 
the  growth  of  such  an  institution.  Virginia  par- 
The  English  parish,  with  its  church-  '^^" 
wardens  and  vestry  and  clerk,  was  reproduced 
in  Virginia  under  the  same  name,  but  with  some 
noteworthy  peculiarities.  If  the  whole  body  of 
ratepayers  had  assembled  in  vestry  meeting,  to 
enact  by-laws  and  assess  taxes,  the  course  of  de- 
velopment would  have  been  like  that  of  the 
New  England  town-meeting.  But  instead  of 
this  the  vestry,  which  exercised  the  chief  author- 
ity in  the  parish,  was  composed  of  twelve  chosen 
men.  This  was  not  government  by  a  primary 
assembly,  it  was  representative  government.  At 
first  the  twelve  vestrymen  were  elected  by  the 
people  of  the  parish,  and  thus  resembled  the 
selectmen  of  New  England ;  but  after  a  while 
"  they  obtained  the  power  of  filling  vacancies 
in  their  own  number,"  so  that  they    ^^ 

■'       The  vestry  a 

became  what  is  called  a  "  close  corpo-    dose  corpo- 
ration," and  the  people  had  nothing 
to  do  with  choosing  them.    Strictly  speaking, 
that  was  not  representative  government ;  it  was 
a  step  on  the  road  that  leads  towards  oligarchical 
or  despotic  government. 

63 


THE  COUNTY 

It  was  the  vestry,  thus  constituted,  that 
apportioned  the  parish  taxes,  appointed  the 
churchwardens,  presented  the  minister  for  in- 
Powers  of  duction  into  office,  and  acted  as  over- 
the  vestry  sccrs  of  the  poor.  The  minister  pre- 
sided in  all  vestry  meetings.  His  salary  was 
paid  in  tobacco,  and  in  1696  it  was  fixed  by  law 
at  1 6,000  pounds  of  tobacco  yearly.  In  many 
parishes  the  churchwardens  were  the  collectors 
of  the  parish  taxes.  The  other  officers,  such  as 
the  sexton  and  the  parish  clerk,  were  appointed 
either  by  the  minister  or  by  the  vestry. 

With  the  local  government  thus  administered, 
we  see  that  the  larger  part  of  the  people  had 
little  directly  to  do.  Nevertheless  in  these  small 
neighbourhoods  government  was  in  full  sight 
of  the  people.  Its  proceedings  went  on  in  broad 
daylight  and  were  sustained  by  public  sentiment. 
As  Jefferson  said,  "The  vestrymen  are  usually 
the  most  discreet  farmers,  so  distributed  through 
the  parish  that  every  part  of  it  may  be  under 
the  immediate  eye  of  some  one  of  them.  They 
are  well  acquainted  with  the  details  and  economy 
of  private  life,  and  they  find  sufficient  induce- 
ments to  execute  their  charge  well,  in  their  phi- 
lanthropy, in  the  approbation  of  their  neigh- 
bours, and  the  distinction  which  that  gives 
them."  1 

^  See  Howard,  Local  Constitutional  History  of  the  United 
States,  vol.  i.  p.  122. 

64 


A 


THE  OLD  VIRGINIA  COUNTY 

The  difference,  however,  between  the  New 
England  township  and  the  Virginia  parish, 
in  respect  •  of  self-government,  was  striking 
enough.  We  have  now  to  note  a  further  differ- 
ence. In  New  England,  as  we  have  seen,  the 
township  was  the  unit  of  representation  in  the 
colonial  legislature ;  but  in  Virginia  the  parish 
was  not  the  unit  of  representation.  The  county 
was  that  unit.  In  the  colonial  legis-  The  county 
lature  of  Virginia  the  representatives  ^/represen-*^ 
sat  not  for  parishes,  but  for  counties.  Nation 
The  difference  is  very  significant.  As  the  polit- 
ical life  of  New  England  was  in  a  manner  built 
up  out  of  the  political  life  of  the  towns,  so  the 
political  life  of  Virginia  was  built  up  out  of  the 
political  life  of  the  counties.  This  was  partly 
because  the  vast  plantations  were  not  grouped 
about  a  compact  village  nucleus  like  the  small 
farms  at  the  North,  and  partly  because  there 
was  not  in  Virginia  that  Puritan  theory  of  the 
church  according  to  which  each  congregation  is 
a  self-governing  democracy.  The  conditions 
which  made  the  New  England  town-meeting 
were  absent.  The  only  alternative  was  some 
kind  of  representative  government,  and  for  this 
the  county  was  a  small  enough  area.  The 
county  in  Virginia  was  much  smaller  than  in 
Massachusetts  or  Connecticut.  In  a  few  in- 
stances the  county  consisted  of  only  a  single 

6s 


THE  COUNTY 

parish  ^  in  some  cases  it  was  divided  into  two 
parishes,  but  oftener  into  three  or  more. 

In  Virginia,  as  in  England  and  in  New  Eng- 
land, the  county  was  an  area  for  the  adminis- 
The  county  tration  of  justicc.  There  were  usually 
court  was        Jn  cach   county  eight  justices  of  the 

virtually  a  i       i     "•  i 

close  cor-  pcacc,  and  their  court  was  the  coun- 
poration  tcrpart   of  the   Quarter    Sessions   in 

England.  They  were  appointed  by  the  gov- 
ernor, but  it  was  customary  for  them  to  nomi- 
nate candidates  for  the  governor  to  appoint,  so 
that  practically  the  court  filled  its  own  vacancies 
and  was  a  close  corporation,  like  the  parish  ves- 
try. Such  an  arrangement  tended  to  keep  the 
general  supervision  and  control  of  things  in  the 
hands  of  a  few  families. 

This  county  court  usually  met  as  often  as 
once  a  month  in  some  convenient  spot  answer- 
ing to  the  shire  town  of  England  or  New  Eng- 
land. More  often  than  not  the  place  originally 
consisted  of  the  court-house  and  very  little  else, 
and  was  named  accordingly  from  the  name  of 
the  county,  as  Hanover  Court  House  or  Fair- 
fax Court  House ;  and  the  small  shire  towns 
that  have  grown  up  in  such  spots  often  retain 
these  names  to  the  present  day.  Such  names 
„,  occur  commonly   in   Virginia,   West 

The  county  ...  ^  i       /--  i- 

seat  or  court     Virginia,  and    South   Carolma,  very 
rarely  in   Kentucky,  North  Carolina, 
Alabama,  Ohio,  and  perhaps  occasionally  else- 
66 


THE  OLD  VIRGINIA  COUNTY 

where.^  Their  number  has  diminished  from  the 
tendency  to  omit  the  phrase  "  Court  House," 
leaving  the  name  of  the  county  for  that  of  the 
shire  town,  as  for  example  in  Culpeper,  Va.  In 
New  England  the  process  of  naming  has  been 
just  the  reverse  ;  as  in  Hartford  County,  Conn., 
or  Worcester  County,  Mass.,  which  have  taken 
their  names  from  the  shire  towns.  In  this,  as 
in  so  many  cases,  whole  chapters  of  history  are 
wrapped  up  in  geographical  names.'"^ 

The  county  court  in  Virginia  had  jurisdiction 
in  criminal  actions  not  involving  peril  of  life  or 
limb,  and  in  civil  suits  where  the  sum  at  stake 
exceeded  twenty-five  shillings.  Smaller  suits 
could  be  tried  by  a  single  justice.  The  powers  of  the 
court  also  had  charge  of  the  probate  '^°"''' 
and  administration  of  wills.  The  court  ap- 
pointed its  own  clerk,  who  kept  the  county  re- 
cords. It  superintended  the  construction  and 
repair  of  bridges  and  highways,  and  for  this 
purpose  divided  the  county  into  "  precincts," 
and  appointed  annually  for  each  precinct  a  high- 
way surveyor.  The  court  also  seems  to  have 
appointed    constables,  one    for    each    precinct. 

^  In  Mitchell's  Atlas,  1883,  the  number  of  cases  is  in  Va. 
38,  W.  Va.  1 3,  S.  C.  1 6,  N.  C.  2,  Ala.  i ,  Ky.  i ,  Ohio  i . 

^  A  few  of  the  oldest  Virginia  counties,  organized  as  such 
in  1634,  had  arisen  from  the  spreading  and  thinning  of  single 
settlements  originally  intended  to  be  cities  and  named  accord- 
ingly. Hence  the  curious  names  (at  first  sight  unintelligible) 
of  "  James  City  County  "  and  "  Charles  City  County." 

67 


THE  COUNTY 

The  justices  could  themselves  act  as  coroners, 
but  annually  two  or  more  coroners  for  each  par- 
ish were  appointed  by  the  governor.  As  we 
have  seen  that  the  parish  taxes  —  so  much  for 
salaries  of  minister  and  clerk,  so  much  for  care 
of  church  buildings,  so  much  for  relief  of  the 
poor,  etc.  —  were  computed  and  assessed  by  the 
vestry  ;  so  the  county  taxes,  for  care  of  court- 
house and  jail,  roads  and  bridges,  coroner's  fees, 
and  allowances  to  the  representatives  sent  to  the 
colonial  legislature,  were  computed  and  assessed 
by  the  county  court.  The  general  taxes  for  the 
colony  were  estimated  by  a  committee  of  the 
legislature,  as  well  as  the  county's  share  of  the 
colony  tax.  The  taxes  for  the  county,  and 
sometimes  the  taxes  for  the  parish  also,  were 
collected  by  the  sheriff.  They  were  usually  paid, 
,    _      not  in  money,  but  in  tobacco ;  and 

The  sheriff  i        •  rr  i  j-  r      .• 

the  sheriiT  was  the  custodian  or  this 
tobacco,  responsible  for  its  proper  disposal. 
The  sheriff  was  thus  not  only  the  officer  for 
executing  the  judgments  of  the  court,  but  he 
was  also  county  treasurer  and  collector,  and  thus 
exercised  powers  almost  as  great  as  those  of  the 
sheriff  in  England  in  the  twelfth  century.  He 
also  presided  over  elections  for  representatives  to 
the  legislature.  It  is  interesting  to  observe  how 
this  very  important  officer  was  chosen.  "  Each 
year  the  court  presented  the  names  of  three  of  its 
members  to  the  governor,  who  appointed  one, 
68 


THE  OLD  VIRGINIA  COUNTY 

generally  the  senior  justice,  to  be  the  sheriff  of 
the  county  for  the  ensuing  year."  ^  Here  again 
we  see  this  close  corporation,  the  county  court, 
keeping  the  control  of  things  within  its  own 
hands. 

One  other  important  county  officer  needs  to 
be  mentioned.  We  have  seen  that  in  early  New 
England  each  town  had  its  train-band  or  com- 
pany of  militia,  and  that  the  companies  in  each 
county  united  to  form  the  county  regiment. 
In  Virginia  it  was  just  the  other  way.  Each 
county  raised  a  certain  number  of  troops,  and 
because  it  was  not  convenient  for  the  men  to  go 
many  miles  from  home  in  assembling  for  pur- 
poses of  drill,  the  county  was  subdivided  into 
military  districts,  each  with  its  company,  accord- 
ing to  rules  laid  down  by  the  governor.  The 
military  command  in  each  county  was  The  county 
vested  in  the  county  lieutenant,  an  I'eutenant 
officer  answering  in  many  respects  to  the  lord- 
lieutenant  of  the  English  shire  at  that  period. 
Usually  he  was  a  member  of  the  governor's 
council,  and  as  such  exercised  sundry  judicial 
functions.  He  bore  the  honorary  title  of  "  colo- 
nel," and  was  to  some  extent  regarded  as  the 
governor's  deputy  ;  but  in  later  times  his  du- 
ties were  confined  entirely  to  military  matters.^ 

^  Edward  Channing,  op.  cit.  p.  478. 
^  For  an  excellent  account  of  local  government  in  Virginia 
before  the  Revolution,  see  Howard,  Local  Const.  Hist,  of  the 

69 


THE  COUNTY 

If  now  we  sum  up  the  contrasts  between 
local  government  in  Virginia  and  that  in  New 
England,  we  observe  :  — 

1.  That  in  New  England  the  management 
of  local  affairs  was  mostly  in  the  hands  of  town 
officers,  the  county  being  superadded  for  certain 
purposes,  chiefly  judicial  ;  while  in  Virginia  the 
management  was  chiefly  in  the  hands  of  county 
officers,  though  certain  functions,  chiefly  eccle- 
siastical, were  reserved  to  the  parish. 

2.  That  in  New  England  the  local  magistrates 
were  almost  always,  with  the  exception  of  jus- 
tices, chosen  by  the  people ;  while  in  Virginia, 
though  some  of  them  were  nominally  appointed 
by  the  governor,  yet  in  practice  they  generally 
contrived  to  appoint  themselves  —  in  other 
words  the  local  boards  practically  filled  their 
own  vacancies  and  were  self-perpetuating. 

These  differences  are  striking  and  profound. 
There  can  be  no  doubt  that,  as  Thomas  Jeffer- 
son clearly  saw,  in  the  long  run  the  interests  of 
political  liberty  are  much  safer  under  the  New 
England  system  than  under  the  Virginia  sys- 
jefferson's  tem.  Jcffcrson  said,  "  Those  wards, 
tovraship  called  townships  in  New  England,  are 
government  the  vital  principle  of  their  govern- 
ments, and  have  proved  themselves  the  wisest 
invention  ever  devised  by  the  wit  of  man  for 

U.  S.,  vol.  i.   pp.  388-407;   also  Edward  Ingle,  in  Johns 
Hopkins  Univ.  Studies,  III.,  ii.-iii. 
70 


THE  OLD  VIRGINIA  COUNTY 

the  perfect  exercise  of  self-government,  and  for 
its  preservation.^  .  .  .  As  Cato,  then,  concluded 
every  speech  with  the  words  Carthago  delenda 
esty  so  do  I  every  opinion  with  the  injunction  : 
'  Divide  the  counties  into  wards  I  '  "  ^ 

We  must,  however,  avoid  the  mistake  of 
making  too  much  of  this  contrast.  As  already 
hinted,  in  those  rural  societies  where  people 
generally  knew  one  another,  its  effects  were  not 
so  far-reaching  as  they  would  be  in  the  more 
complicated  society  of  to-day.  Even  though 
Virginia  had  not  the  town-meeting,  "  it  had  its 
familiar  court-day,"  which  "was  a  «<court- 
holiday  for  all  the  country-side,  espe-  '^*y" 
cially  in  the  fall  and  spring.  From  all  directions 
came  in  the  people  on  horseback,  in  wagons, 
and  afoot.  On  the  court-house  green  assem- 
bled, in  indiscriminate  confusion,  people  of  all 
classes,  —  the  hunter  from  the  backwoods,  the 
owner  of  a  few  acres,  the  grand  proprietor,  and 
the  grinning,  heedless  negro.  Old  debts  were 
settled,  and  new  ones  made ;  there  were  auc- 
tions, transfers  of  property,  and,  if  election  times 
were  near,  stump-speaking."  ^ 

For  seventy  years  or  more  before  the  Decla- 
ration of  Independence  the  matters  of  general 
public  concern,  about  which  stump  speeches 
were  made  on  Virginia  court-days,  were  very 

^  Jefferson's  Works,  vii.   13.  ^  Id.,  vi.  544. 

^  Ingle,  loc.  cit. 

71 


THE  COUNTY 

similar  to  those  that  were  discussed  in  Massa- 
chusetts town-meetings  when  representatives 
were  to  be  chosen  for  the  legislature.  Such 
questions  generally  related  to  some  real  or 
alleged  encroachment  upon  popular  liberties  by 
the  royal  governor,  who,  being  appointed  and 
sent  from  beyond  sea,  was  apt  to  have  ideas  and 
purposes  of  his  own  that  conflicted  with  those 
of  the  people.  This  perpetual  antagonism  to 
the  governor,  who  represented  British  imperial 
interference  with  American  local  self-govern- 
ment, was  an  excellent  schooling  in  political 
liberty,  alike  for  Virginia  and  for  Massachusetts. 
When  the  stress  of  the  Revolution  came,  these 
two  leading  colonies  cordially  supported  each 
other,  and  their  political  characteristics  were 
reflected  in  the  kind  of  achievements  for  which 
each  was  especially  distinguished.  The  Virginia 
system,  concentrating  the  administration  of 
local  affairs  in  the  hands  of  a  few  county  fami- 
virginia  pro-  ^^^^j  ^^^  eminently  favourable  for 
lific  in  great     developing  skilful  and  vigorous  lead- 

leaders  .  "  .         .  . 

ership.  And  while  in  the  history  of 
Massachusetts  during  the  Revolution  we  are 
chiefly  impressed  with  the  wonderful  degree  in 
which  the  mass  of  the  people  exhibited  the  kind 
of  political  training  that  nothing  in  the  world 
except  the  habit  of  parliamentary  discussion  can 
impart;  on  the   other   hand,  Virginia   at  that 


72 


THE  OLD  VIRGINIA  COUNTY 

time  gave  us  —  in  Washington,  Jefferson, 
Henry,  Madison,  and  Marshall,  to  mention  no 
others  —  such  a  group  of  consummate  leaders 
as  the  world  has  seldom  seen  equalled. 


73 


IV 
TOWNSHIP   AND   COUNTY 

§    \.  Various  Local  Systems. 

WE  have  now  completed  our  outline 
sketch  of  town  and  county  govern- 
ment as  illustrated  in  New  England 
on  the  one  hand  and  in  Virginia  on  the  other. 
There  are  some  important  points  in  the  early- 
history  of  local  government  in  other  portions 
of  the  original  thirteen  states,  to  which  we  must 
next  call  attention ;  and  then  we  shall  be  pre- 
pared to  understand  the  manner  in  which  our 
great  western  country  has  been  organized  under 
civil  government.  We  must  first  say  something 
about  South  Carolina  and  Maryland. 

South  Carolina  was  settled  from  half  a  century 
to  a  century  later  than  Massachusetts  and  Vir- 
Parishes  gi^J^)  ^^'^  ^Y  ^^^  distinct  streams  of 
in  South  immigration.  The  lowlands  near  the 
coast  were  settled  by  Englishmen  and 
by  French  Huguenots,  but  the  form  of  govern- 
ment was  purely  English.  There  were  parishes, 
as  in  Virginia,  but  popular  election  played  a 
greater  part  in  them.  The  vestrymen  were 
elected  yearly  by  all  the  taxpayers  of  the  parish. 
74 


VARIOUS  LOCAL  SYSTEMS 

The  minister  was  also  elected  by  his  people, 
and  after  1 7 1 9  each  parish  sent  its  representatives 
to  the  colonial  legislature,  though  in  a  few  in- 
stances two  parishes  were  joined  together  for 
the  purpose  of  choosing  representatives.  The 
system  was  thus  more  democratic  than  in  Vir- 
ginia ;  and  in  this  connection  it  is  worth  while 
to  observe  that  parochial  libraries  and  free 
schools  were  established  as  early  as  17 12,  much 
earlier  than  in  Virginia. 

During  the  first  half  of  the  eighteenth  century 
a  very  different  stream  of  immigration,  coming 
mostly  along  the  slope  of  the  Alleghanies  from 
Virginia  and  Pennsylvania,  and  consisting  in 
great  part  of  Germans,  Scotch  Highlanders,  and 
Scotch-Irish,  peopled  the  upland  western  regions 
of  South  Carolina.  For  some  time  this  territory 
had  scarcely  any  civil  organization.  It  was  a 
kind  of  "  wild  West."  There  were  as  yet  no 
counties  in  the  colony.  There  was  just  one 
sheriff  for  the  whole  colony,  who  The  back 
"  held  his  office  by  patent  from  the  '^""""^^ 
Crown."  ^  A  court  sat  in  Charleston,  but  the 
arm  of  justice  was  hardly  long  enough  to  reach 
offenders  in  the  mountains.  "  To  punish  a 
horse-thief  or  prosecute  a  debtor  one  was  some- 
times compelled  to  travel  a  distance  of  several 
hundred  miles,  and  be  subjected  to  all  the  dan- 
gers and  delays  incident  to   a  wild  country." 

^  B.  J.  Ramage,  in  Johns  Hopkins  Univ.  Studies,  1.,  xii. 

75 


TOWNSHIP  AND  COUNTY 

When  people  cannot  get  justice  in  what  in 
civilized  countries  is  the  regular  way,  they  will 
get  it  in  some  irregular  way.  So  these  moun- 
taineers began  to  form  themselves  into  bands 
known  as  "  regulators,"  quite  like  the  "vigilance 
committees  "  formed  for  the  same  purposes  in 
California  a  hundred  years  later.  For  thieves 
and  murderers  the  "  regulators  "  provided  a 
speedy  trial,  and  the  nearest  tree  served  as  a 
gallows. 

In  order  to  put  a  stop  to  this  lynch  law,  the 
legislature  in  1768  divided  the  back  country 
The  district  i^^to  distHcts,  each  with  its  sheriff  and 
sj'stem  court-house,  and  the  judges  were  sent 

on  circuit  through  these  districts.  The  upland 
region  with  its  districts  was  thus  very  differ- 
ently organized  from  the  lowland  region  with 
its  parishes,  and  the  effect  was  for  a  while 
almost  like  dividing  South  Carolina  into  two 
states.  At  first  the  districts  were  not  allowed 
to  choose  their  own  sheriffs,  but  in  course  of 
time  they  acquired  this  privilege.  It  was  diffi- 
cult to  apportion  the  representation  in  the  state 
legislature  so  as  to  balance  evenly  the  districts 
in  the  west  against  the  parishes  in  the  east, 
and  accordingly  there  was  much  dissatisfaction, 
especially  in  the  west  which  did  not  get  its  fair 
share.  In  1786  the  capital  was  moved  from 
Charleston  to  Columbia  as  a  concession  to  the 


76 


VARIOUS  LOCAL  SYSTEMS 

back  country",  and  in  1 808  a  kind  of  compromise 
was  effected,  in  such  wise  that  the  uplands 
secured  a  permanent  majority  in  the  house  of 
representatives,  while  the  lowlands  retained  con- 
trol of  the  senate.  The  two  sections  had  each 
its  separate  state  treasurer,  and  this  kind  of 
double  government  lasted  until  the  Civil  War. 

At  the  close  of  the  war  "  the  parishes  were 
abolished  and  the  district  system  was  extended 
to  the  low  country."  But  soon  after-  The  mod- 
ward,  by  the  new  constitution  of  cTrolTna^ 
1868,  the  districts  were  abolished  and  county 
the  state  was  divided  into  thirty-four  counties, 
each  of  which  sends  one  senator  to  the  state 
senate,  while  they  send  representatives  in  pro- 
portion to  their  population.  In  each  county 
the  people  elect  three  county  commissioners,  a 
school  commissioner,  a  sheriff,  a  judge  of  pro- 
bate, a  clerk,  and  a  coroner.  In  one  respect  the 
South  Carolina  county  is  quite  peculiar :  it  has 
no  organization  for  judicial  purposes.  "  The 
counties,  like  their  institutional  predecessor  the 
district,  are  grouped  into  judicial  circuits,  and  a 
judge  is  elected  by  the  legislature  for  each  cir- 
cuit. Trial  justices  are  appointed  by  the  gov- 
ernor for  a  term  of  two  years." 

This  system,  like  the  simple  county  system 
everywhere,  is  a  representative  system ;  the 
people  take  no  direct  part  in  the  management 


77 


TOWNSHIP  AND  COUNTY  ^ 

of  affairs.    In  one  respect  it  seems  obviously  to 
need  amendment.    In  states  where  county  gov- 
ernment has  grown  up  naturally,  after  the  Vir-  | 
ginia  fashion,   the  county   is   apt  to  be  much 
smaller  than  in  states  where  it  is  simply  a  dis- 
trict embracing  several  township  governments. 
Thus  the  average  size  of  a  county  in  Massachu-   J 
setts  is  557  square  miles,  and  in   Connecticut     ' 
594  square  miles  ;  but  in  Virginia  it  is  only  383 
and  in  Kentucky  307  square  miles.     In  South 
Carolina,  however,  where  the  county  did  not 
grow  up  of  itself,  but  has  been  enacted,  so  to 
speak,  by  a  kind  of  afterthought,  it  has  been 
made  too  large  altogether.   The  average  area  of 
the  county  in   South   Carolina   is  about    1000 
The  coun-      squatc  milcs.   Some  counties  are  much 
ties  are  too      krgcr.  CoUcton  County  in  1 890  could 
hold  the  whole  state  of  Rhode  Island, 
with  600  square  miles  to  spare.     Such  an  area 
is  much  too  extensive  for  local  self-government. 
Its  different  portions  are  too  far  apart  to  under-  flj 
stand  each  other's  local  wants,   or  to   act  tffi.-  ■ 
ciently    toward    supplying    them  ;  and    roads,    - 
bridges,  and  free  schools  suffer  accordingly.   An 
unsuccessful  attempt  has  been  made  to  reduce 
the  size  of  the  counties.    But  what  seems  per- 
haps more  likely  to  happen  is  the  practical  divi- 
sion of  the  counties  into  school  districts,  and 
the  gradual  development  of  these  school  districts 
into  something  like  self-governing  townships. 


VARIOUS  LOCAL  SYSTEMS 

To  this  very  interesting  point  we  shall  again 
have  occasion  to  refer. 

We  come  now  to  Maryland.  The  early  his- 
tory of  local  institutions  in  this  state  is  a  fasci- 
nating subject  of  study.  None  of  the  American 
colonies  had  a  more  distinctive  character  of  its 
own,  or  reproduced  old  English  usages  in  a 
more  curious  fashion.  There  was  much  in  colo- 
nial Maryland,  with  its  lords  of  the  manor,  its 
bailiffs  and  seneschals,  its  courts  baron  and 
courts  leet,  to  remind  one  of  the  England  of 
the  thirteenth  century.  But  of  these  ancient 
institutions,  long  since  extinct,  there  is  but  one 
that  needs  to  be  mentioned  in  the  present  con- 
nection. In  Maryland  the  earliest  form  of  civil 
community  was  called,  not  a  parish  or  town- 
ship, but  a  hundred.  This  curious  The  hundred 
designation  is  often  met  with  in  Eng-  '"  Maryland 
lish  history,  and  the  institution  which  it  de- 
scribes, though  now  almost  everywhere  extinct, 
was  once  almost  universal  among  men.  It  will 
be  remembered  that  the  oldest  form  of  civil 
society,  which  is  still  to  be  found  among  some 
barbarous  races,  was  that  in  which  families  were 
organized  into  clans  and  clans  into  tribes  ;  and 
we  saw  that  among  our  forefathers  in  England 
the  dwelling-place  of  the  clan  became  the  town- 
ship, and  the  home  of  the  tribe  became  the 
shire  or  county.  Now,  in  nearly  all  primitive 
societies  that  have  been  studied,  we  find  a  group 

79 


TOWNSHIP  AND  COUNTY 

that  is  larger  than  the  clan  but  smaller  than  the 
tribe,  —  or,  in  other  words,  intermediate  be- 
tween clan  and  tribe.  Scholars  usually  call  this 
Clans,  bro-  g^^up  by  its  Greek  name,  phratry,  or 
therhoods,       « brotherhood,"    for   it    was    known 

and  tribes  ,  ,  .  .  -^  , 

long  ago  that  m  ancient  Ureece  clans 
were  grouped  into  brotherhoods  and  brother- 
hoods into  tribes.  Among  uncivilized  people 
all  over  the  world  we  find  this  kind  of  group- 
ing. For  example,  a  tribe  of  North  American 
Indians  is  regularly  made  up  of  phratries,  and 
the  phratries  are  made  up  of  clans  ;  and,  strange 
as  it  might  at  first  seem,  a  good  many  half- 
understood  features  of  early  Greek  and  Roman 
society  have  had  much  light  thrown  upon  them 
from  the  study  of  the  usages  of  Cherokees  and 
Mohawks.  Wherever  men  have  been  placed, 
the  problem  of  forming  civil  society  has  been 
in  its  main  outlines  the  same  ;  and  in  its  earlier 
stages  it  has  been  approached  in  pretty  much 
the  same  way  by  all. 

The  ancient  Romans  had  the  brotherhood, 
and  called  it  a  curia.  The  Roman  people  were 
organized  in  clans,  curies,  and  tribes.  But  for 
military  purposes  the  curia  was  called  a  century^ 
because  it  furnished  a  quota  of  one  hundred 
men  to  the  army.  The  word  century  originally 
Origin  of  the  meant  a  company  of  a  hundred  men, 
hundred         ^^^  j^  ^^^^  ^^^y  by  a  figurc  of  spccch 

that  it  afterward  came  to  mean  a  period  of  a 
80 


VARIOUS  LOCAL  SYSTEMS 

hundred  years.  Now  among  all  Germanic  peo- 
ples, including  the  English,  the  brotherhood 
seems  to  have  been  called  the  hundred.  Our 
English  forefathers  seem  to  have  been  organ- 
ized, like  other  barbarians,  in  clans,  brother- 
hoods, and  tribes ;  and  the  brotherhood  was  in 
some  way  connected  with  the  furnishing  a  hun- 
dred warriors  to  the  host.  In  the  tenth  century 
we  find  England  covered  with  small  districts 
known  as  hundreds.  Several  townships  together 
made  a  hundred,  and  several  hundreds  together 
made  a  shire.  The  hundred  was  chiefly  notable 
as  the  smallest  area  for  the  administration  of 
justice.  The  hundred  court  was  a  re-  -phe  hundred 
presentative  body,  composed  of  the  '^°"''' 
lords  of  lands  or  their  stewards,  with  the  reeve 
and  four  selected  men  and  the  parish  priest 
from  each  township.  There  was  a  chief  magis- 
trate for  the  hundred,  known  originally  as  the 
hundredman,  but  after  the  Norman  Conquest 
as  the  high  constable. 

By  the  thirteenth  century  the  importance  of 
the  hundred  had  much  diminished.  The  need 
for  any  such  body,  intermediate  be-  pecay  of  the 
tween  township  and  county,  ceased  to  ^""'^red 
be  felt,  and  the  functions  of  the  hundred  were 
gradually  absorbed  by  the  county.  Almost 
everywhere  in  England,  by  the  reign  of  Eliza- 
beth, the  hundred  had  fallen  into  decay.  It  is 
curious  that  its  name  and  some  of  its  pecu- 
8i 


TOWNSHIP  AND  COUNTY 

liarities  should  have  been  brought  to  America, 
and  should  in  one  state  have  remained  to  the 
present  day.  Some  of  the  early  settlements  in 
Virginia  were  called  hundreds,  but  they  were 
practically  nothing  more  than  parishes,  and  the 
name  soon  became  obsolete,  except  upon  the 
map,  where  we  still  see,  for  example,  Bermuda 
Hundred.  But  in  Maryland  the  hundred  flour- 
ished and  became  the  political  unit,  like  the 
township  in  New  England.  The  hundred  was 
the  militia  district,  and  the  district  for  the  assess- 
ment of  taxes.  In  the  earliest  times  it  was  also 
the  representative  district ;  delegates  to  the  co- 
„    ,  ^         lonial    legislature   sat    for    hundreds. 

Hundred-  ^         O 

meetings  in      But   in   1 654  this  was  changed,  and 
^"^  representatives  were  elected  by  coun- 

ties. The  officers  of  the  Maryland  hundred 
were  the  high  constable,  the  commander  of  mi- 
litia, the  tobacco-viewer,  the  overseer  of  roads, 
and  the  assessor  of  taxes.  The  last-mentioned 
officer  was  elected  by  the  people,  the  others 
were  all  appointed  by  the  governor.  The  hun- 
dred had  also  its  assembly  of  all  the  people, 
which  was  in  many  respects  like  the  New  Eng- 
land town-meeting.  These  hundred-meetings 
enacted  by-laws,  levied  taxes,  appointed  com- 
mittees, and  often  exhibited  a  vigorous  political 
life.  But  after  the  Revolution  they  fell  into  dis- 
use, and  in  1824  the  hundred  became  extinct  in 


82 


VARIOUS  LOCAL  SYSTEMS 

Maryland  ;  its  organization  was  swallowed  up 
in  that  of  the  county. 

In  Delaware,  however,  the  hundred  remains 
to  this  day.  There  it  is  simply  an  imperfectly 
developed  township,  but  its  relations  The  hundred 
with  the  county,  as  they  have  stood  '"  ^^^^^''^ 
with  but  little  change  since  1743,  are  very  in- 
teresting. Each  hundred  used  to  choose  its  own 
assessor  of  taxes,  and  every  year  in  the  month 
of  November  the  assessors  from  all  the  hun- 
dreds used  to  meet  in  the  county  court-house, 
along  with  three  or  more  justices  of  the  peace 
and  eight  grand  jurors,  and  assess  the  taxes  for 
the  ensuing  year.  A  month  later  they  assembled 
again,  to  hear  complaints  from  persons  who 
considered  themselves  overtaxed  ;  and  having 
disposed  of  this  business,  they  proceeded  to 
appoint  collectors,  one  for  each  hundred.  This 
county  assembly  was  known  as  the  "  court  of 
levy  and  appeal,"  or  more  briefly  as  the  levy 
court.  It  appointed  the  county  trea-  The  levy 
surer,  the  road  commissioners,  and  the    court,  or 

f.     ,  p,.  ,  representa- 

overseers  or  the  poor,  bmce  1793  the  tive  county 
levy  court  has  been  composed  of  *^^^'"^^y 
special  commissioners  chosen  by  popular  vote, 
but  its  essential  character  has  not  been  altered. 
As  a  thoroughly  representative  body,  it  reminds 
one  of  the  county  courts  of  the  Plantagenet 
period. 


83 


TOWNSHIP  AND  COUNTY 

We  next  come  to  the  great  middle  colonies, 

Pennsylvania  and  New  York.    The  most  note- 

Id         worthy  feature  of  local  government 

Pennsyi-         in  Pennsylvania  was  the  general  elec- 

vania  county      ^'  r  .  rr  i.  i 

tion  or  county  omcers  by  popular 
vote.  The  county  was  the  unit  of  representa- 
tion in  the  colonial  legislature,  and  on  election 
days  the  people  of  the  county  elected  at  the 
same  time  their  sheriffs,  coroners,  assessors,  and 
county  commissioners.  In  this  respect  Pennsyl- 
vania furnished  a  model  which  has  been  followed 
by  most  of  the  states  since  the  Revolution,  as 
regards  the  county  governments.  It  is  also  to 
be  noted  that  before  the  Revolution,  as  Penn- 
sylvania increased  in  population,  the  townships 
began  to  participate  in  the  work  of  government, 
each  township  choosing  its  overseers  of  the 
poor,  highway  surveyors,  and  inspectors  of 
elections.^ 

New  York  had  from  the  very  beginning  the 
rudiments  of  an  excellent  system  of  local  self- 
government.  The  Dutch  villages  had  their  as- 
semblies, which  under  the  English  rule  were 
^  developed  into  town-meetings,  though 

Town-meet-  ,  ^  "  ° 

ings  in  New     With  less  ample  powcrs  than  those  of 

New  England.    The  governing  body 

of  the  New  York  town  consisted  of  the  con- 

^  Town-meetings  were  not   quite   unknown   in    Pennsyl- 
vania ;  see  W.  P.  Hoi  comb,  Pennsylvatiia  Boroughs,  Johns 
Hopkins  Univ.  Studies,  IV.,  iv. 
84 


VARIOUS  LOCAL  SYSTEMS 

stable  and  eight  overseers,  who  answered  in 
most  respects  to  the  selectmen  of  New  England. 
Four  of  the  overseers  were  elected  each  year  in 
town-meeting,  and  one  of  the  retiring  overseers 
was  at  the  same  time  elected  constable.  In 
course  of  time  the  elective  offices  came  to  in- 
clude assessors  and  collectors,  town-clerk,  high- 
way surveyors,  fence-viewers,  pound-masters, 
and  overseers  of  the  poor.  At  first  the  town- 
meetings  seem  to  have  been  held  only  for  the 
election  of  officers,  but  they  acquired  to  a  limited 
extent  the  power  of  levying  taxes  and  enacting 
by-laws.  In  1703  a  law  was  passed  requiring 
each  town  to  elect  yearly  an  officer  to  be  known 
as  the  "  supervisor,"  whose  duty  was    ^, 

'■  .  •'     ,  The  county 

"to  compute,  ascertam,  examme,  board  of  su- 
oversee,  and  allow  the  contingent,  p"^'^°''^ 
publick,  and  necessary  charges  "  of  the  county.* 
For  this  purpose  the  supervisors  met  once  a 
year  at  the  county  town.  The  principle  was  the 
same  as  that  of  the  levy  court  in  Delaware. 
This  board  of  supervisors  was  a  strictly  repre- 
sentative government,  and  formed  a  strong  con- 
trast to  the  close  corporation  by  which  county 
affairs  were  administered  in  Virginia.  The  New 
York  system  is  of  especial  interest,  because  it 
has  powerfully  influenced  the  development  of 
local  institutions  throughout  the  Northwest. 

^  Howard,  Local  Const,  Hist.,  i.  in. 


85 


TOWNSHIP  AND  COUNTY 

§  2.  Settlement  of  the  Public  Domain. 
The  westward  movement  of  population  in  the 
United  States  has  for  the  most  part  followed 
the  parallels  of  latitude.  Thus  Virginians  and 
North  Carolinians,  crossing  the  Alleghanies, 
settled  Kentucky  and  Tennessee;  thus  people 
from  New  England  filled  up  the  central  and 
northern    parts   of  New   York,   and 

Westward  .'  at-    i  •  ttt- 

movement  passed  on  mto  Michigan  and  Wiscon- 
of  population    ^-^^ .  ^^^^  qj^j^^  Indiana,  and  Illinois 

received  many  settlers  from  New  York  and 
Pennsylvania.  In  the  early  times  when  Ken- 
tucky was  settled,  the  pioneer  would  select  a 
piece  of  land  wherever  he  liked,  and  after  hav- 
ing a  rude  survey  made,  and  the  limits  marked 
by  "  blazing  "  the  trees  with  a  hatchet,  the  sur- 
vey would  be  put  on  record  in  the  state  land- 
office.  So  little  care  was  taken  that  "  half  a 
dozen  patents  would  sometimes  be  given  for 
the  same  tract.  Pieces  of  land,  of  all  shapes  and 
sizes,  lay  between  the  patents.  .  .  .  Such  a 
system  naturally  begat  no  end  of  litigation,  and 
there  remain  in  Kentucky  curious  vestiges  of 
it "  to  this  day.^ 

In  order  to  avoid  such  confusion  in  the  set- 
tlement of  the  territory  north  of  the  Ohio  River, 
Congress  passed  the  land-ordinance  of   1785, 
which  was  based  chiefly  upon  the  suggestions 
^  Hinsdale,  Old  Northwest,  p.  261. 

86 


SETTLEMENT  OF  THE  PUBLIC  DOMAIN 

of  Thomas  Jefferson,  and  laid  the  foundation 
of  our  simple  and  excellent  system  for  survey- 
ing national  lands.  According  to  this  system 
as  gradually  perfected,  the  government  sur- 
veyors first  mark  out  a  north  and  south  line 
which  is  called  the  principal  meridian.  Method  of 
Twenty-four  such  meridians  have  ^^pubik 
been  established.  The  first  was  the  lands 
dividing  line  between  Ohio  and  Indiana ;  the 
last  one  runs  through  Oregon  a  little  to  the 
west  of  Portland.  On  each  side  of  the  principal 
meridian  there  are  marked  off  subordinate  me- 
ridians called  range  lines^  six  miles  apart,  and 
numbered  east  and  west  from  their  principal.^ 
Then  a  true  parallel  of  latitude  is  drawn,  cross- 
ing these  meridians  at  right  angles.  It  is  called 
the  base  line^  or  standard  parallel.  Eleven  such 
base  lines,  for  example,  run  across  the  great 
state  of  Oregon.  Finally,  on  each  side  of  the 
base  line  are  drawn  subordinate  parallels  called 
township  lines,  six  miles  apart,  and  numbered 
north  and  south  from  their  base  line.  By  these 
range  lines  and  township  lines  the  whole  land 
is  thus  divided  into  townships  iust  six       .  .    ^ 

r      •;  Origin  of 

miles   square,  and  the  townships  are    western 
all    numbered.     Take,  for    example,    *°^"«hips, 
the  township  of  Deerfield  in  Michigan.    That 

^  The  following  is  a  diagram  of  the  first  principal  meridian, 
and  of  the  base  line  running  across  southern  Michigan.  A  B 
is  the  principal  meridian  ;  C  D  is  the  base  line.    The  figures 

87 


TOWNSHIP  AND  COUNTY 

is  the  fourth  township  north  of  the  base  line, 
and  it  is  in  the  fifth  range  east  of  the  first  prin- 
cipal meridian.  It  would  be  called  township 
number  4  north  range  5  east,  and  was  so  called 
before  it  was  settled  and  received  a  name.  Evi- 
dently one  must  go  24  miles  from  the  principal 
meridian,  or  1 8  miles  from  the  base  line,  in  order 

on  the  base  line  mark  the  range  lines  ;  the  figures  on  the 
principal  meridian  mark  the  township  lines.  E  is  township  4 
north  in  range  5  east ;  F  is  township  5  south  in  range  4  west ; 
G  is  township  3  north  in  range  3  west. 


6 

6 

4 



3 

2 

6 

2 

3 

4 

E 
6 

6 

6 

4 

3 

2 

1 

1 



P 

1 











2 

3 

4 



6 

6 

As  the  intervals  between  meridians  diminish  as  we  go  north- 
ward, it  is  sometimes  necessary  to  introduce  a  correction  line. 


SETTLEMENT  OF  THE  PUBLIC  DOMAIN 

to  enter  this  township.    It  is  all  as  simple  as 
the  numbering  of  streets  in  Philadelphia.* 

the  nature  of  which  will  be  seen  from  the  following  dia- 
gram :  — 


Correction  Line. 


Base  Line. 

Diagram  of  Correction  Line. 

^  In  Philadelphia  the  streets  for  the  most  part  cross  each 
other  at  right  angles  and  at  equal  distances,  so  that  the  city  is 
laid  out  like  a  checkerboard.  The  parallel  streets  running  in 
one  direction  have  names,  often  taken  from  trees.  Market 
Street  is  the  central  street  from  which  the  others  are  reckoned 
in  both  directions  according  to  the  couplet 

"  Market,  Arch,  Race,  and  Vine, 
Chestnut,  Walnut,  Spruce,  and  Pine,"  etc. 

The  cross  streets  are  not  named  but  numbered,  as  First, 
Second,  etc.  The  houses  on  one  side  of  the  street  have  odd 
numbers  and  on  the  other  side  even  numbers,  as  is  the  general 
custom  in  the  United  States.  With  each  new  block  a  new 
century  of  numbers  begins,  although  there  are  seldom  more 
than  forty  real  numbers  in  a  block.  For  example,  the  corner 
89 


TOWNSHIP  AND  COUNTY 

If  now  we  look  at  Livingston  County,  in 
which  this  township  of  Deerfield  is  situated,  we 
observe  that  the  county  is  made  up  of  sixteen 
townships,  in  four  rows  of  four ;  and  the  next 
county,  Washtenaw,  is  made  up  of  twenty  town- 
ships, in  five  rows  of  four.  Maps  of  our  West- 
ern states  are  thus  apt  to  have  somewhat  of  a 
and  of  West-  checkerboard  aspect,  not  unlike  the 
ern  counties  wondcrful  country  which  Alice  visited 
after  she  had  gone  through  the  looking-glass. 
Square  townships  are  apt  to  make  square  or 
rectangular  counties,  and  the  state,  too,  is  likely 
to  acquire  a  more  symmetrical  shape.    Nothing 

house  on  Market  Street,  just  above  Fifteenth,  is  1501  Market 
Street.  At  somewhere  about  1535  or  1539  you  come  to 
Sixteenth  Street  ;  then  there  is  a  break  in  the  numbering, 
and  the  next  comer  house  is  1601.  So  in  going  along  a 
numbered  street,  say  Fifteenth,  from  Market,  the  first  number 
will  be  I  ;  after  passing  Arch,  loi  ;  after  passing  Race,  201, 
etc.  With  this  system  a  very  slight  familiarity  with  the  city 
enables  one  to  find  his  way  to  any  house,  and  to  estimate  the 
length  of  time  needflil  for  reaching  it.  St.  Louis  and  some 
other  large  cities  have  adopted  the  Philadelphia  plan,  the  con- 
venience of  which  is  as  great  as  its  monotony.  In  Washing- 
ton the  streets  running  in  one  direction  are  lettered  A,  B,  C, 
etc.,  and  the  cross  streets  are  numbered  ;  and  upon  the 
checkerboard  plan  is  superposed  another  plan  in  w^hich  broad 
avenues  radiate  in  various  directions  from  the  Capitol,  and  a 
few  other  centres.  These  avenues  cut  through  the  square 
system  of  streets  in  all  directions,  so  that  instead  of  the  dull 
checkerboard  monotony  there  is  an  almost  endless  variety  of 
magnificent  vistas. 

90 


SETTLEMENT  OF  THE  PUBLIC  DOMAIN 

could  be  more  unlike  the  jagged,  irregular  shape 
of  counties  in  Virginia  or  townships  in  Massa- 
chusetts, which  grew  up  just  as  it  happened. 
The  contrast  is  similar  to  that  between  Chicago, 
with  its  straight  streets  crossing  at  right  angles, 
and  Boston,  or  London,  with  their  labyrinths 
of  crooked  lanes.  For  picturesqueness  the  ad- 
vantage is  entirely  with  the  irregular  city,  but 
for  practical  convenience  it  is  quite  the  other 
way.  So  with  our  western  lands  the  simplicity 
and  regularity  of  the  system  have  made  it  a 
marvel  of  convenience  for  the  settlers,  and 
doubtless  have  had  much  to  do  with  the  rapidity 
with  which  civil  governments  have  been  built 
up  in  the  West.  "  This  fact,"  says  a  recent 
writer,  "  will  be  appreciated  by  those  who  know 
from  experience  the  ease  and  certainty  with 
which  the  pioneer  on  the  great  plains  of  Kan- 
sas, Nebraska,  or  Dakota  is  enabled  to  select 
his  homestead  or  *  locate  his  claim  *  unaided  by 
the  expensive  skill  of  the  surveyor."  ^ 

There  was  more  in  it  than  this,  however. 
There  was  a  germ  of  organization  planted  in 
these  western  townships,  which  must  be  noted 
as  of  great  importance.  Each  township,  being 
six  miles  in  length  and  six  miles  in  breadth,  was 
divided  into  thirty-six  numbered  sections,  each 
containing  just  one  square  mile,  or  640  acres. 
Each  section,  moreover,  was  divided  into  sixteen 

^  Howard,  Local  Const.  Hist,  of  U.  S.,  vol.  i.  p.  139. 
91 


TOWNSHIP  AND  COUNTY 

tracts  of  forty  acres  each,  and  sales  to  settlers 
were  and  are  generally  made  by  tracts  at  the 
Some  effects  ^^.tc  of  3.  dolkr  and  a  quarter  per  acre. 
of  the  system  jtqj.  £f|-y  dolkrs  3.  man  may  buy  forty 
acres  of  unsettled  land,  provided  he  will  actu- 
ally go  and  settle  upon  it,  and  this  has  proved 
to  be  a  very  effective  inducement  for  enterpris- 
ing young  men  to  "  go  West."  Many  a  tract 
thus  bought  for  fifty  dollars  has  turned  out  to 
be  a  soil  upon  which  princely  fortunes  have 
grown.  A  tract  of  forty  acres  represents  to-day 
in  Chicago  or  Minneapolis  an  amount  of  wealth 
difficult  for  the  imagination  to  grasp. 

But  in  each  of  these  townships  there  was  at 
least  one  section  which  was  set  apart  for  a  spe- 
cial  purpose.    This  was   usually  the   sixteenth 
section,  nearly  in  the  centre  of  the  township ; 
and  sometimes  the  thirty-sixth  section. 

The  reserva-      •         i  i  i 

tion  for  pub-  m  the  southeast  corner,  was  also  re- 
licschook  served.  These  reservations  were  for 
the  support  of  public  schools.  Whatever  money 
was  earned,  by  selling  the  land  or  otherwise,  in 
these  sections,  was  to  be  devoted  to  school  pur- 
poses. This  was  a  most  remarkable  provision. 
No  other  nation  has  ever  made  a  gift  for 
schools  on  so  magnificent  a  scale.  We  have 
good  reason  for  taking  pride  in  such  a  liberal 
provision.  But  we  ought  not  to  forget  that  all 
national  gifts  really  involve  taxation,  and  this 
is  no  exception   to   the  rule,  although  in  this 

92 


SETTLEMENT  OF  THE  PUBLIC  DOMAIN 

case  it  is  not  a  taking  of  money,  but  a  keeping 
of  it  back.  The  national  government  says  to 
the  local  government,  whatever  revenues  may 
come  from  that  section  of  640  acres,  be  they 
great  or  small,  be  it  a  spot  in  a  rural  grazing 
district,  or  a  spot  in  some  crowded  city,  are  not 
to  go  into  the  pockets  of  individual  men  and  wo- 
men, but  are  to  be  reserved  for  public  purposes. 
This  is  a  case  of  disguised  taxation,  and  may 
serve  to  remind  us  of  what  was  said  some  time 
ago,  that  a  government  cannot  give  anything 
without  in  one  way  or  another  depriving  indi- 
viduals of  its  equivalent.  No  man  can  sit  on  a 
camp-stool  and  by  any  amount  of  tugging  at 
that  camp-stool  lift  himself  over  a  fence.  What- 
ever is  given  comes  from  somewhere,  and  what- 
ever is  given  by  governments  comes  from  the 
people. 

This  reservation  of  one  square  mile  in  every 
township  for  purposes  of  education  has  already 
most  profoundly  influenced  the  de-    ,    ,. 
velopment   of  local    government    m    vation  there 
our  western  states,  and    in  the  near   "^l^l^^f 
future  its  effects  are  likely  to  become    township 
still  deeper  and  wider.    To  mark  out 
a  township  on  the  map  may  mean  very  little, 
but  when  once  you  create  in  that  township  some 
institution  that  needs  to  be  cared  for,  you  have 
made  a  long  stride  toward  inaugurating  town- 
ship government.   When  a  state,  as  for  instance 

93 


TOWNSHIP  AND  COUNTY 

Illinois,  grows  up  after  the  method  just  de- 
scribed, what  can  be  more  natural  than  for  it  to 
make  the  township  a  body  corporate  for  school 
purposes,  and  to  authorize  its  inhabitants  to 
elect  school  officers  and  tax  themselves,  so  far 
as  may  be  necessary,  for  the  support  of  the 
schools  ?  But  the  school-house,  in  the  centre 
of  the  township,  is  soon  found  to  be  useful  for 
many  purposes.  It  is  convenient  to  go  there  to 
vote  for  state  officers  or  for  congressmen  and 
president,  and  so  the  school  township  becomes 
an  election  district.  Having  once  established 
such  a  centre,  it  is  almost  inevitable  that  it 
should  sooner  or  later  be  made  to  serve  sundry 
other  purposes,  and  become  an  area  for  the 
election  of  constables,  justices  of  the  peace, 
highway  surveyors,  and  overseers  of  the  poor. 
In  this  way  a  vigorous  township  government 
tends  to  grow  up  about  the  school-house  as  a 
nucleus,  somewhat  as  in  early  New  England  it 
grew  up  about  the  church. 

This  tendency  may  be  observed  in  almost  all 
the  western  states  and  territories,  even  to  the 
Pacific  coast.  When  the  western  country  was 
first  settled,  representative  county  government 
At  first  the  prevailed  almost  everywhere.  This 
county  sys-      was  partly  because  the  earliest  settlers 

tem  prevailed         _      ,         _^^  .  , 

or  the  West  came  m  much  greater 
numbers  from  the  middle  and  southern  states 
than  from  New  England.    It  was  also  partly  be- 

94 


TOWNSHIP-COUNTY  SYSTEM 

cause,  so  long  as  the  country  was  thinly  settled, 
the  number  of  people  in  a  township  was  very 
small,  and  it  was  not  easy  to  have  a  government 
smaller  than  that  of  the  county.  It  was  some- 
thing, however,  that  the  little  squares  on  the 
map,  by  grouping  which  the  counties  were 
made,  were  already  called  townships.  There  is 
much  in  a  name.  It  was  still  more  important 
that  these  townships  were  only  six  miles  square  ; 
for  that  made  it  sure  that,  in  due  course  of  time, 
when  population  should  have  become  dense 
enough,  they  would  be  convenient  areas  for 
establishing  township  government. 

§  3.   The  Representative  Township-County  Sys- 
tem in  the  West. 
The  first  western  state  to  adopt  the  town- 
meeting  was  Michigan,  where  the  great  majority 
of  the  settlers  had  come  from  New  England,  or 
from  central  New  York,  which  was  a    ^j^^  ^^^^_ 
kind  of  westward  extension  of  New    meeting  in 
England.*    Counties  were  established      '*^  '^^ 
in  Michigan  Territory  in  1 805,  and  townships 
were  first  incorporated  in  1825.  This  was  twelve 
years  before  Michigan  became  a  state.    At  first 
the  powers  of  the  town-meeting  were  narrowly 

^  <'  Of  the  496  members  of  the  Michigan  Pioneer  Associa- 
tion in  1 88 1,  407  are  from  these  sections  "  [New  England 
and  New  York],  Bemis,  Local  Government  in  Michigan 
and  the  Northwest,  Johns  Hopkins  Univ.  Studies,  I.,  v. 

95 


TOWNSHIP  AND  COUNTY 

limited.  It  elected  the  town  and  county  officers, 
but  its  power  of  appropriating  money  seems  to 
have  been  restricted  to  the  purpose  of  extirpat- 
ing noxious  animals  and  weeds.  In  1827,  how- 
ever, it  was  authorized  to  raise  money  for  the 
support  of  schools,  and  since  then  its  powers 
have  steadily  increased,  until  now  they  approach 
those  of  the  town-meeting  in  Massachusetts. 

The  history  of  Illinois  presents  an  extremely 
interesting  example  of  rivalry  and  conflict  be- 
tween the  town  system  of  New  England  and 
Setdement  the  county  systcm  of  the  South.  Ob- 
of  Illinois  serve  that  this  great  state  is  so  long 
that,  while  the  parallel  of  latitude  starting  from 
its  northern  boundary  runs  through  Marble- 
head  in  Massachusetts,  the  parallel  through  its 
southernmost  point,  at  Cairo,  runs  a  little  south 
of  Petersburg  in  Virginia.  In  1818,  when  Illi- 
nois framed  its  state  government  and  was  ad- 
mitted to  the  Union,  its  population  was  chiefly 
in  the  southern  half,  and  composed  for  the  most 
part  of  pioneers  from  Virginia  and  Virginia's 
daughter-state,  Kentucky.  These  men  brought 
with  them  the  old  Virginia  county  system,  but 
with  the  very  great  diff'erence  that  the  county 
officers  were  not  appointed  by  the  governor,  or 
allowed  to  be  a  self-perpetuating  board,  but  were 
elected  by  the  people  of  the  county.  This  was 
a  true  advance  in  the  democratic  direction,  but 
an  essential  defect  of  the  southern  system  re- 
96 


TOWNSHIP-COUNTY  SYSTEM 

mained  in  the  absence  of  any  kind  of  local  meet- 
ing for  the  discussion  of  public  affairs  and  the 
enactment  of  local  laws. 

By  the  famous  Ordinance  of  1787,  to  which 
we  shall  again  have  occasion  to  refer,  negro  slav- 
ery had  been  forever  prohibited  to  the  north  of 
the  Ohio  River,  so  that,  in  spite  of  Effects  of  the 
the  wishes  of  her  early  settlers,  Illinois  Ordinance  of 
was  obliged  to  enter  the  Union  as  a 
free  state.  But  in  1820  Missouri  was  admitted 
as  a  slave  state,  and  this  turned  the  stream  of 
southern  migration  aside  from  Illinois  to  Mis- 
souri. These  emigrants,  to  whom  slaveholding 
was  a  mark  of  social  distinction,  preferred  to  go 
where  they  could  own  slaves.  About  the  same 
time  settlers  from  New  England  and  New  York, 
moving  along  the  southern  border  of  Michigan 
and  the  northern  borders  of  Ohio  and  Indiana, 
began  pouring  into  the  northern  part  of  Illinois. 
These  newcomers  did  not  find  the  representa- 
tive county  system  adequate  for  their  needs, 
and  they  demanded  township  government.  A 
memorable  political  struggle  ensued  between  the 
northern  and  southern  halves  of  the  state,  end- 
ing in  1848  with  the  adoption  of  a  new  consti- 
tution. It  was  provided  "  that  the  legislature 
should  enact  a  general  law  for  the  political 
organization  of  townships,  under  which  any 
county  might  act  whenever  a  majority  of  its 


97 


TOWNSHIP  AND  COUNTY 

voters  should  so  determine."  ^  This  was  intro- 
ducing the  principle  of  local  option,  and  in  ac- 
cordance therewith  township  governments  with 
town-meetings  were  at  once  introduced  in  the 
northern  counties  of  the  state,  while  the  south- 
ern counties  kept  on  in  the  old  way.  Now 
comes  the  most  interesting  part  of  the  story. 
The  two  systems  being  thus  brought  into  im- 
mediate contact  in  the  same  state,  with  free 
choice  between  them  left  to  the  people,  the 
northern  system  has  slowly  but  steadily  sup- 
planted the  southern  system,  until  at  the  pre- 
sent day  only  one  fifth  part  of  the  counties  in 
Illinois  remain  without  township  government. 
This  example  shows  the  intense  vitality  of 
the  township  system.  It  is  the  kind  of  govern- 
intensevi-  ment  that  people  are  sure  to  prefer 
t^'nshL^^  when  they  have  once  tried  it  under 
system  favourablc  conditions.    In  the  West 

the  hostile  conditions  against  which  it  has  to 
contend  are  either  the  recent  existence  of  negro 
slavery  and  the  ingrained  prejudice  in  favour  of 
the  Virginia  method,  as  in  Missouri ;  or  simply 
the  sparseness  of  population,  as  in  Nebraska. 
Time  will  evidently  remove  the  latter  obstacle, 
and  probably  the  former  also.  It  is  very  signi- 
ficant that  in  Missouri,  which  began  so  lately 
as  1879  to  erect  township  governments  under  a 

*  Shaw,   Local  Government    in    Illinois,  Johns  Hopkins 
Univ.  Studies,  I.,  iii. 

98 


TOWNSHIP-COUNTY  SYSTEM 

local  option  law  similar  to  that  of  Illinois,  the 
process  has  already  extended  over  about  one 
sixth  part  of  the  state  ;  and  in  Nebraska,  where 
the  same  process  began  in  1883,  it  has  covered 
nearly  one  third  of  the  organized  counties  of 
the  state. 

The  principle  of  local  option  as  to  govern- 
ment has  been  carried  still  farther  in  Minnesota 
and  Dakota.  The  method  just  described  may 
be  called  county  option ;  the  ques-  county  op- 
tion is  decided  by  a  majority  vote  of  ^^^^^siiip 
the  people  of  the  county.  But  in  op"on 
Minnesota  in  1878  it  was  enacted  that  as  soon 
as  any  one  of  the  little  square  townships  in  that 
state  should  contain  as  many  as  twenty-five  legal 
voters,  it  might  petition  the  board  of  county  com- 
missioners and  obtain  a  township  organization, 
even  though  the  adjacent  townships  in  the  same 
county  should  remain  under  county  govern- 
ment only.  Five  years  later  the  same  provision 
was  adopted  by  Dakota,  and  under  it  township 
government  is  steadily  spreading. 

Two  distinct  grades  of  township  govern- 
ment are  to  be  observed  in  the  states  west  of  the 
Alleghanies  ;  the  one  has  the  town-meeting  for 
deliberative  purposes,  the  other  has    ^    ,     ^ 

,  .  .,        .  1  •    1        Grades  or 

not.     In    Ohio    and    Indiana,   which    township 
derived  their  local  institutions  largely    sovemment 
from  Pennsylvania,  there  is  no  such  town-meet- 
ing, the  administrative  offices  are  more  or  less 

99 


TOWNSHIP  AND  COUNTY 

concentrated  in  a  board  of  trustees,  and  the  town 
is  quite  subordinate  to  the  county.  The  prin- 
cipal features  of  this  system  have  been  repro- 
duced in  Iowa,  Missouri,  and  Kansas. 

The  other  system  was  that  which  we  have 
seen  beginning  in  Michigan,  under  the  influence 
of  New  York  and  New  England.  Here  the 
town-meeting,  with  legislative  powers,  is  always 
present.  The  most  noticeable  feature  of  the 
Michigan  system  is  the  relation  between  town- 
ship and  county,  which  was  taken  from  New 
York.  The  county  board  is  composed  of  the 
supervisors  of  the  several  townships,  and  thus 
represents  the  townships.  It  is  the  same  in 
Illinois.  It  is  held  by  some  writers  that  this  is 
the  most  perfect  form  of  local  government,^  but 
on  the  other  hand  the  objection  is  made  that 
county  boards  thus  constituted  are  too  large.^ 
We  have  seen  that  in  the  states  in  question  there 
are  not  less  than  i6,  and  sometimes  more  than 
20,  townships  in  each  county.  In  a  board  of 
1 6  or  20  members  it  is  hard  to  fasten  responsi- 
bility upon  anybody  in  particular ;  and  thus  it 
becomes  possible  to  have  "  combinations,"  and 
to  indulge  in  that  exchange  of  favours  known 
as  "  log-rolling,"  which  is  one  of  the  besetting 
sins   of  all   large   representative    bodies.     Re- 

^  Howard,  Local  Const.  Hist.,  passim. 
"^  Bemis,  Local  Government  in  Michigan,  Johns  Hopkins 
Univ.  Studies,  I,,  v. 

100 


TOWNSHIP-COUNTY  SYSTEM 

sponsibility  is  more  concentrated  in  the  smaller 
county  boards  of  Massachusetts,  Wisconsin,  and 
Minnesota. 

It  is  one  signal  merit  of  the  peaceful  and  un- 
trammelled way  in  which  American  institutions 
have  grown  up,  the  widest  possible  scope  be- 
ing allowed  to  individual  and  local  preferences, 
that    different  states  adopt    different 

.     .  ,  J  An  excellent 

methods  of  attammg  the  great  end  at    result  of  the 
which  all  are  aiming  in  common, —   certrailza- 
good  government.    One  part  of  our    tion  in  the 

°  °  r      1  1  •        United  States 

vast  country  can  pront  by  the  experi- 
ence of  other  parts,  and  if  any  system  or 
method  thus  comes  to  prevail  everywhere  in  the 
long  run,  it  is  likely  to  be  by  reason  of  its  in- 
trinsic excellence.  Our  country  affords  an  ad- 
mirable field  for  the  study  of  the  general  prin- 
ciples which  lie  at  the  foundations  of  universal 
history.  Governments,  large  and  small,  are 
growing  up  all  about  us,  and  in  such  wise  that 
we  can  watch  the  processes  of  growth,  and  learn 
lessons  which,  after  making  due  allowances  for 
difference  of  circumstance,  are  very  helpful  in 
the  study  of  other  times  and  countries. 

The  general  tendency  toward  the  spread  of 
township  government  in  the  more  recently 
settled  parts  of  the  United  States  is  unmistak- 
able, and  I  have  already  remarked  upon  the 
influence  of  the  public  school  system  in  aiding 
this  tendency.  The  school  district,  as  a  prepara- 

lOI 


TOWNSHIP  AND  COUNTY 

tion  for  the  self-governing  township,  is  already 
exerting  its  influence  in  Colorado,  Nevada, 
California,  Wyoming,  Montana,  Idaho, Oregon, 
and  Washington. 

Something  similar  is  going  on  in  the  southern 
states,  as  already  hinted  in  the  case  of  South 
Carolina.  Local  taxation  for  school  purposes 
has  also  been  established  in  Kentucky  and  Ten- 
nessee, in  both  Virginias,  and  elsewhere.  There 
has  thus  begun  a  most  natural  and  wholesome 
movement,  which  might  easily  be  checked,  with 
disastrous  results,  by  the  injudicious  appropria-j 
Township  ^^^^  °^  national  revenue  for  the  aid  of] 
government     southcm  schools.    It  is  to  be  hoped] 

isgeiminat-  1111  1 

ing  in  the  that  throughout  the  southern  states. 
South  g^g  formerly  in  Michigan,  the  self-gov- 

erning school  district  may  prepare  the  way  for 
the  self-governing  township,  with  its  deliberative 
town-meeting.  Such  a  growth  must  needs  be 
slow,  inasmuch  as  it  requires  long  political 
training  on  the  part  of  the  negroes  and  the 
lower  classes  of  white  people  ;  but  it  is  along 
such  a  line  of  development  that  such  political 
training  can  best  be  acquired ;  and  in  no  other 
way  is  complete  harmony  between  the  two  races 
so  likely  to  be  secured. 

Dr.    Edward   Bemis,  who   in   a  profoundly 
interesting   essay  ^  has   called  attention  to  this 

^  Loca/   Government   in   Michigan  and   the    Northwest^ 
Johns  Hopkins  Univ.  Studies,  I.,  v. 
102 


TOWNSHIP -COUNTY  SYSTEM 

function  of  the  school  district  as  a  stage  in  the 
evolution  of  the  township,  remarks  also  upon 
the  fact  that  "  it  is  in  the  local  government  of 
the  school  district  that  woman  suf-  woman 
frage  is  being  tried."  In  several  states  ^"^''^s^ 
women  may  vote  for  school  committees,  or  may 
be  elected  to  school  committees,  or  to  sundry 
administrative  school  offices.  At  present  (1898) 
there  are  not  less  than  twenty-two  states  in 
which  women  have  school  suffrage.  In  Utah, 
Idaho,  Colorado,  and  Wyoming  women  have 
full  suffrage,  voting  at  municipal,  state,  and  na- 
tional elections.  In  Kansas  they  have  municipal 
suffrage,  in  Iowa  bond  suffrage,  and  in  Louisiana 
tax-paying  women  can  vote  on  questions  sub- 
mitted to  tax-payers  as  such.  In  England,  it 
may  be  observed,  unmarried  women  and  widows 
who  pay  taxes  vote  not  only  on  school  matters, 
but  generally  in  the  local  elections  of  vestries, 
boroughs,  and  poor-law  unions.  In  the  new 
Parish  Councils  Bill  this  municipal  suffrage  is 
extended  to  married  women.  In  the  Isle  of 
Man  women  vote  for  members  of  Parliament. 
In  South  Australia  they  have  full  suffrage,  and 
in  1893  ^hey  were  endowed  with  full  rights  of 
suffrage  in  New  Zealand. 

The  historical  reason  why  the  suffrage  has  so 

generally  been  restricted  to  men  is  perhaps  to 

be  sought  in  the  conditions  under  which  voting 

originated.    In  primeval  times  voting  was  prob- 

103 


TOWNSHIP  AND  COUNTY 

ably  adopted  as  a  substitute  for  fighting.  The 
smaller  and  presumably  weaker  party  yielded 
to  the  larger  without  an  actual  trial  of  physical 
strength ;  heads  were  counted  instead  of  being 
broken.  Accordingly  it  was  only  the  warriors 
who  became  voters.  The  restriction  of  political 
activity  to  men  has  also  probably  been  empha- 
sized by  the  fact  that  all  the  higher  civilizations 
have  passed  through  a  well-defined  patriarchal 
stage  of  society  in  which  each  household  was 
represented  by  its  oldest  warrior.  From  present 
indications  it  would  seem  that  under  the  con- 
ditions of  modern  industrial  society  the  arrange- 
ments that  have  so  long  subsisted  are  likely  to 
be  very  essentially  altered. 


104 


THE    CITY 

§  I .  Direct  and  Indirect  Government. 

IN  the  foregoing  survey  of  local  institutions 
and  their  growth,  we  have  had  occasion  to 
compare  and  sometimes  to  contrast  two 
different  methods  of  government  as  exemplified 
on  the  one  hand  in  the  township  and    „  , 

t  Summary  of 

on  the  other  hand  in  the  county.  In  foregoing 
the  former  we  have  direct  government 
by  a  primary  assembly,^  the  town  meeting ;  in 
the  latter  we  have  indirect  government  by  a  re- 
presentative board.  If  the  county  board,  as  in 
colonial  Virginia,  perpetuates  itself,  or  is  ap- 
pointed otherwise  than  by  popular  vote,  it  is  not 
strictly  a  representative  board,  in  the  modern 
sense  of  the  phrase ;  the  government  is  a  kind 
of  oligarchy.  If,  as  in  colonial  Pennsylvania, 
and  in  the  United  States  generally  to-day,  the 
county  board  consists  of  officers  elected  by  the 
people,  the  county  government  is  a  represen- 
tative democracy.    The  township  government, 

^  A  primary  assembly  is  one  in  which  the  members  attend 
of  their  own  right,  without  having  been  elected  to  it ;  a  re- 
presentative assembly  is  composed  of  elected  delegates. 
105 


THE  CITY 

on  the  other  hand,  as  exemplified  in  New  Eng- 
land and  in  the  northwestern  states  which  have 
adopted  it,  is  a  pure  democracy.  The  latter,  as 
we  have  observed,  has  one  signal  advantage  over 
all  other  kinds  of  government,  in  so  far  as  it 
tends  to  make  every  man  feel  that  the  business 
of  government  is  part  of  his  own  business,  and 
that  where  he  has  a  stake  in  the  management 
of  public  affairs  he  has  also  a  voice.  When 
people  have  got  into  the  habit  of  leaving  local 
affairs  to  be  managed  by  representative  boards, 
their  active  interest  in  local  affairs  is  liable  to  be 
somewhat  weakened,  as  all  energies  in  this  world 
are  weakened,  from  want  of  exercise.  When 
some  fit  subject  of  complaint  is  brought  up,  the 
individual  is  too  apt  to  feel  that  it  is  none  of 
his  business  to  furnish  a  remedy,  let  the  proper 
officers  look  after  it.  He  can  vote  at  elections, 
which  is  a  power ;  he  can  perhaps  make  a  stir 
in  the  newspapers,  which  is  also  a  power ;  but 
personal  participation  in  town-meeting  is  like- 
wise a  power,  the  necessary  loss  of  which,  as  we 
pass  to  wider  spheres  of  government,  is  un- 
questionably to  be  regretted. 

Nevertheless  the  loss  is  inevitable.  A  pri- 
mary assembly  of  all  the  inhabitants  of  a  county, 
for  purposes  of  local  government,  is  out  of  the 
question.  There  must  be  representative  gov- 
ernment, and  for  this  purpose  the  county  system, 

io6 


DIRECT  AND  INDIRECT  GOVERNMENT 

an  inheritance  from  the  ancient  EngHsh  shire, 
has  furnished  the  needful  machinery.  Our  county 
government  is  near  enough  to  the  peo-  Direct  gov- 
ple  to  be  kept  in  general  from  gross  pSebT 
abuses  of  power.  There  are  many  county 
points  which  can  be  much  better  decided  in 
small  representative  bodies  than  in  large  mis- 
cellaneous meetings.  The  responsibility  of  our 
local  boards  has  been  fairly  well  preserved. 
The  county  system  has  had  no  mean  share  in 
keeping  alive  the  spirit  of  local  independence 
and  self-government  among  our  people.  As  re- 
gards efficiency  of  administration,  it  has  achieved 
commendable  success,  except  in  the  matter  of 
rural  highways  ;  and  if  our  roads  are  worse  than 
those  of  any  other  civilized  country,  that  is  due 
not  so  much  to  imperfect  administrative  methods 
as  to  other  causes,  —  such  as  the  sparseness  of 
population,  the  fierce  extremes  of  sunshine  and 
frost,  and  the  fact  that  since  this  huge  country 
began  to  be  reclaimed  from  the  wilderness,  the 
average  voter,  who  has  not  travelled  in  Europe, 
knows  no  more  about  good  roads  than  he  knows 
about  the  temples  of  Paestum  or  the  pictures  of 
Tintoretto,  and  therefore  does  not  realize  what 
demands  he  may  reasonably  make. 

This  last  consideration  applies  in  some  de- 
gree, no  doubt,  to  the  ill-paved  and  filthy  streets 
which  are  the  first  things  to  arrest  one's  atten- 


107 


THE  CITY 

tion  in  most  of  our  great  cities.  It  is  time  for 
us  now  to  consider  briefly  our  general  system 
of  city  government,  in  its  origin  and  in  some 
of  its  most  important  features. 

Representative  government  in  counties  is  ne- 
cessitated by  the  extent  of  territory  covered ;  in 
cities  it  is  necessitated  by  the  multitude  of  peo- 
ple.   When    the   town   comes   to    have  a  very 
large  population,  it    becomes  phvsi- 

The  Boston  iT      •  -i  i  i 

town-meet-  cally  impossible  to  have  town-meet- 
mgini82o  ings.  No  Way  could  be  devised  by 
which  all  the  tax-payers  of  the  city  of  New  York 
could  be  assembled  for  discussion.  In  1820  the 
population  of  Boston  was  about  40,000,  of  dk 
whom  rather  more  than  7000  were  voters  quali- 
fied to  attend  the  town-meetings.  Consequently 
"  when  a  town-meeting  was  held  on  any  excit-  ^ 
ing  subject  in  Faneuil  Hall,  those  only  who 
obtained  places  near  the  moderator  could  even 
hear  the  discussion.  A  few  busy  or  interested 
individuals  easily  obtained  the  management  of 
the  most  important  affairs  in  an  assembly  in 
which  the  greater  number  could  have  neither 
voice  nor  hearing.  When  the  subject  was  not 
generally  exciting,  town-meetings  were  usually 
composed  of  the  selectmen,  the  town  officers, 
and  thirty  or  forty  inhabitants.  Those  who 
thus  came  were  for  the  most  part  drawn  to  it 
from  some  official  duty  or  private  interest, 
which,  when  performed  or  attained,  they  gener- 
108 


DIRECT  AND  INDIRECT  GOVERNMENT 

ally  troubled  themselves  but  little,  or  not  at  all, 
about  the  other  business  of  the  meeting."  ^ 

Under  these  circumstances  it  was  found  ne- 
cessary in  1822  to  drop  the  town-meeting  al- 
together and  devise  a  new  form  of  government 
for  Boston.  After  various  plans  had  been  sug- 
gested and  discussed,  it  was  decided  that  the 
new  government  should  be  vested  in  a  Mayor ; 
a  select  council  of  eight  persons  to  be  called 
the  Board  of  Aldermen  ;  and  a  Common  Coun- 
cil of  forty-eight  persons,  four  from  each  of 
twelve  wards  into  which  the  city  was  to  be  di- 
vided. All  these  officials  were  to  be  elected  by 
the  people.  At  the  same  time  the  official  name 
"  Town  of  Boston  "  was  changed  to  "  City  of 
Boston." 

There  is  more  or  less  of  history  involved  in 
these  offices  and  designations,  to  which  we  may 
devote  a  few  words  of  explanation.    Distinctions 
In  New  England  local  usage  there  is   JoJ^'J^fand 
an    ambiguity   in  the  word  "  town."    "ties 
As  an  official  designation  it  means  the  inhab- 
itants of  a  township  considered  as  a  community 
or   corporate    body.    In    common    parlance    it 
often  means  the  patch  of  land  constituting  the 
township    on    the    map,  as  when  we  say   that 
Squire    Brown's   elm    is  "  the  biggest   tree    in 
town."    But  it  still  oftener  means  a  collection 
of  streets,  houses,  and  families  too  large  to  be 
*  Quincy's  Municipal  History  of  Boston ,  p.  28. 
109 


THE  CITY 

called  a  village,  but  without  the  municipal  gov- 
ernment that  characterizes  a  city.  Sometimes 
it  is  used  par  excellence  for  a  city,  as  when  an 
inhabitant  of  Cambridge,  itself  a  large  subur- 
ban city,  speaks  of  going  to  Boston  as  going 
"into  town."  But  such  cases  are  of  course 
mere  survivals  from  the  time  when  the  suburb 
was  a  village.  In  American  usage  generally  the 
town  is  something  between  village  and  city,  a 
kind  of  inferior  or  incomplete  city.  The  image 
which  it  calls  up  in  the  mind  is  of  something 
urban  and  not  rural.  This  agrees  substantially 
with  the  usage  in  European  history,  where 
"  town  "  ordinarily  means  a  walled  town  or  city 
as  contrasted  with  a  village.  In  England  the 
word  is  used  either  in  this  general  sense,  or 
more  specifically  as  signifying  an  inferior  city, 
as  in  America.  But  the  thing  which  the  town 
lacks,  as  compared  with  the  complete  city,  is 
very  different  in  America  from  what  it  is  in 
England.  In  America  it  is  municipal  govern- 
ment—  with  mayor,  aldermen,  and  common 
council — which  must  be  added  to  the  town  in 
order  to  make  it  a  city.  In  England  the  town 
may  (and  usually  does)  have  this  municipal 
government ;  but  it  is  not  distinguished  by  the 
Latin  name  "  city "  unless  it  has  a  cathedral 
and  a  bishop.  Or  in  other  words  the  English 
city  is,  or  has  been,  the  capital  of  a  diocese. 
Other  towns  in  England  are  distinguished  as 
no 


ENGLISH  BOROUGHS  AND  CITIES 

"  boroughs,"  an  old  Teutonic  word  which  was 
originally  applied  to  towns  as  fortified  places/ 
The  voting  inhabitants  of  an  English  city  are 
called  "  citizens;  "  those  of  a  borough  are  called 
"  burgesses."  Thus  the  official  corporate  desig- 
nation of  Cambridge  is  "  the  mayor,  aldermen, 
and  burgesses  of  Cambridge ;  "  but  Oxford  is 
the  seat  of  a  bishopric,  and  its  corporate  desig- 
nation is  "  the  mayor,  aldermen,  and  citizens 
of  Oxford." 

§  1.  Origin  of  English  Boroughs  and  Cities. 

What,  then,  was  the  origin  of  the  English 
borough  or  city?  In  the  days  when  Roman 
legions  occupied  for  a  long  time  cer- 

o  r  ^  ^  D       ^  ^11  Chesters 

tain  military  stations  in  Britain,  their 
camps  were  apt  to  become  centres  of  trade  and 
thus  to  grow  into  cities.  Such  places  were  gen- 
erally known  as  casters  or  chesters^  from  the 
Latin  castra,  "  camp,"  and  there  are  many  of 
them  on  the  map  of  England  to-day.  But  these 
were  exceptional  cases.  As  a  rule  the  origin  of 
the  borough  was  as  purely  English  as  its  name. 
We  have  seen  that  the  town  was  originally  the 

^  The  word  appears  in  many  town  names,  such  as  Edin- 
burgh, Scarborough,  Catiterbury,  Bury  St.  Edmunds ;  and 
on  the  Continent,  as  Hamburg,  Cherbourg,  Burgos,  etc. 
In  Connecticut,  New  Jersey,  Pennsylvania,  and  Minnesota, 
the  name  "borough  "  is  applied  to  a  certain  class  of  muni- 
cipalities with  some  of  the  powers  of  cities. 
Ill 


THE  CITY 

dwelling-place  of  a  stationary  clan,  surrounded 
by  palisades  or  by  a  dense  quickset  hedge. 
Coalescence  Now  where  such  small  enclosed  places 
{"ntrfbrtified  ^^^^  thinly  scattered  about  they  devel- 
boroughs  oped  simply  into  villages.  But  where, 
through  the  development  of  trade  or  any  other 
cause,  a  good  many  of  them  grew  up  close  to- 
gether within  a  narrow  compass,  they  gradually 
coalesced  into  a  kind  of  compound  town  ;  and 
with  the  greater  population  and  greater  wealth, 
there  was  naturally  more  elaborate  and  perma- 
nent fortification  than  that  of  the  palisaded  vil- 
lage. There  were  massive  walls  and  frowning 
turrets,  and  the  place  came  to  be  called  a  for- 
tress or  "  borough."  The  borough,  then,  "  was 
simply  several  townships  packed  tightly  to- 
gether ;  a  hundred  smaller  in  extent  and  thicker 
in  population  than  other  hundreds."  ^ 

From  this  compact  and  composite  character 
of  the  borough  came  several  important  results. 
The  borough  We  havc  seen  that  the  hundred  was 
as  a  hundred  ^j^g  smallest  area  for  the  administra- 
tion of  justice.  The  township  was  in  many  re- 
spects self-governing,  but  it  did  not  have  its 
court,  any  more  than  the  New  England  town- 
ship of  the  present  day  has  its  court.  The  low- 
est court  was  that  of  the  hundred,  but  as  the 
borough  was  equivalent  to  a  hundred  it  soon 

^  Freeman,  Norman  Conquest,  vol.  v.  p.  466.    For  a  de- 
scription of  the  hundred,  see  above,  pp.  79—83. 
I  12 


ENGLISH  BOROUGHS  AND  CITIES 

came  to  have  its  own  court.  And  although 
much  obscurity  still  surrounds  the  early  history 
of  municipal  government  in  England,  it  is  prob- 
able that  this  court  was  a  representative  board, 
like  any  other  hundred  court,  and  that  the  re- 
lation of  the  borough  to  its  constituent  town- 
ships resembled  the  relation  of  the  modern  city 
to  its  constituent  wards. 

But  now  as  certain  boroughs  grew  larger  and 
annexed  outlying  townships,  or  acquired  adja- 
cent territory  which  presently  became  The  borough 
covered  with  streets  and  houses,  their  ^*  ^  "'''"'^ 
constitution  became  still  more  complex.  The 
borough  came  to  embrace  several  closely  packed 
hundreds,  and  thus  became  analogous  to  a  shire. 
In  this  way  it  gained  for  itself  a  sheriff  and  the 
equivalent  of  a  county  court.  For  example, 
under  the  charter  granted  by  Henry  I.  in  i  loi, 
London  was  expressly  recognized  as  a  county 
by  itself.  Its  burgesses  could  elect  their  own 
chief  magistrate,  who  was  called  the  port-reeve, 
inasmuch  as  London  is  a  seaport ;  in  some  other 
towns  he  was  called  the  borough-reeve.  He  was 
at  once  the  chief  executive  officer  and  the  chief 
judge.  The  burgesses  could  also  elect  their 
sheriff,  although  in  all  rural  counties  Henry's 
father,  William  the  Conqueror,  had  lately  de- 
prived the  people  of  this  privilege  and  appointed 
the  sheriffs  himself.  London  had  its  represen- 
tative board,  or  council,  which  was  the  equiva- 

113 


THE  CITY 

lent  of  a  county  court.  Each  ward,  moreover, 
had  its  own  representative  board,  which  was  the 
equivalent  of  a  hundred  court.  "  Within  the 
wards,  or  hundreds,  the  burgesses  were  grouped 
together  in  township,  parish,  or  manor.  .  .  . 
Into  the  civic  organization  of  London,  to  whose 
special  privileges  all  lesser  cities  were  ever  striv- 
ing to  attain,  the  elements  of  local  administra- 
tion embodied  in  the  township,  the  hundred, 
and  the  shire  thus  entered  as  component  parts."  ' 
Constitutionally,  therefore,  London  was  a  little 
world  in  itself,  and  in  a  less  degree  the  same 
was  true  of  other  cities  and  boroughs  which 
afterwards  obtained  the  same  kind  of  organi- 
zation, as  for  example,  York  and  Newcastle, 
Lincoln  and  Norwich,  Southampton  and  Bris- 
tol. 

In  such  boroughs  or  cities  all  classes  of  soci- 
ety were  brought  into  close  contact,  —  barons 
and  knights,  priests  and  monks,  mer- 
chants and  craftsmen,  free  labourers 
and  serfs.  But  trades  and  manufactures,  which 
always  had  so  much  to  do  with  the  growth  of 
the  city,  acquired  the  chief  power  and  the  con- 
trol of  the  government.  From  an  early  period 
tradesmen  and  artisans  found  it  worth  while  to 
form  themselves  into  guilds  or  brotherhoods, 
in  order  to  protect  their  persons  and  property 

^  Hannis  Taylor,  Origin  and  Growth  of  the  English  Con- 
stitution, vol.  i.  p.  458. 

114 


ENGLISH  BOROUGHS  AND  CITIES 

against  insult  and  robbery  at  the  hands  of  great 
lords  and  their  lawless  military  retainers.  Thus 
there  came  to  be  guilds,  or  "  worshipful  com- 
panies," of  grocers,  fishmongers,  butchers,  weav- 
ers, tailors,  ironmongers,  carpenters,  saddlers, 
armourers,  needle-makers,  etc.  In  large  towns 
there  was  a  tendency  among  such  trade  guilds 
to  combine  in  a  "  united  brotherhood,"  or 
"  town  guild,"  and  this  organization  at  length 
acquired  full  control  of  the  city  government. 
In  London  this  process  was  completed  in  the 
course  of  the  thirteenth  century.  To  obtain 
the  full  privileges  of  citizenship  one  had  to  be 
enrolled  in  a  guild.  The  guild  hall  became  the 
city  hall.  The  aldermen^  or  head  men  of  sun- 
dry guilds,  became  the  head  men  of  Mayor,  aider- 
the  several  wards.    There  was  a  repre-   "1!"' ^""^ 

r  common 

sentative  board,  or  common  council^  council 
elected  by  the  citizens.  The  aldermen  and  com- 
mon council  held  their  meeting  in  the  Guildhall, 
and  over  these  meetings  presided  the  chief  mag- 
istrate, or  port-reeve,  who  by  this  time,  in  ac- 
cordance with  the  fashion  then  prevailing,  had 
assumed  the  French  title  of  mayor.  As  London 
had  come  to  be  a  little  world  in  itself,  so  this 
city  government  reproduced  on  a  small  scale 
the  national  government ;  the  mayor  answering 
to  the  king,  the  aristocratic  board  of  aldermen 
to  the  House  of  Lords,  and  the  democratic 
common  council  to  the  House  of  Commons. 

"5 


THE  CITY 

A  still  more  suggestive  comparison,  perhaps, 
would  be  between  the  aldermen  and  our  federal 
Senate,  since  the  aldermen  represented  wards, 
while  the  common  council  represented  the  citi- 
zens. 

The  constitution  thus  perfected  in  the  city 
of  London  ^  six  hundred  years  ago  has  remained 
The  city  of  to  this  day  without  essential  change. 
London  "The  voters  are  enrolled  members  of 

companies  which  represent  the  ancient  guilds. 
Each  year  they  choose  one  of  the  aldermen  to 
be  lord  mayor.  Within  the  city  he  has  preced- 
ence next  to  the  sovereign  and  before  the  royal 
family ;  elsewhere  he  ranks  as  an  earl,  thus  in- 
dicating the  equivalence  of  the  city  to  a  county, 
and  with  like  significance  he  is  lord  lieutenant 
of  the  city  and  justice  of  the  peace.  The  twenty- 
six  aldermen,  one  for  each  ward,  are  elected  by 
the  people,  such  as  are  entitled  to  vote  for 
members  of  Parliament ;  they  are  justices  of  the 
peace.  The  common  councilmen,  206  in  num- 
ber, are  also  elected  by  the  people,  and  their 

^  The  city  of  London  extends  east  and  west  from  the 
Tower  to  Temple  Bar,  and  north  and  south  from  Finsbury 
to  the  Thames,  with  a  population  of  not  more  than  100,000, 
and  is  but  a  small  part  of  the  enormous  metropolitan  area  now 
known  as  London,  which  is  a  circle  of  twelve  miles  radius 
in  every  direction  from  its  centre  at  Charing  Cross,  with  a 
population  of  more  than  5,000,000.  This  vast  area  is  an 
agglomeration  of  many  parishes,  manors,  etc. 

116 


ENGLISH  BOROUGHS  AND  CITIES 

legislative  power  within  the  city  is  practically 
supreme ;  Parliament  does  not  think  of  over- 
ruling it.  And  the  city  government  thus  con- 
stituted is  one  of  the  most  clean-handed  and 
efficient  in  the  world.^ 

The  development  of  other  English  cities  and 
boroughs  was  so  far  like  that  of  London  that 
merchant  guilds  generally  obtained  control,  and 
government  by  mayor,  aldermen,  and  common 
council  came  to  be  the  prevailing  type.  Having 
also  their  own  judges  and  sheriffs,  and  English  cities 
not  being  obliged  to  go  outside  of  their   f^e  bulwarks 

,f  °        .       ?        .  r  ofUberty 

own  walls  to  obtam  justice,  to  enforce 
contracts  and  punish  crime,  their  efficiency  as  in- 
dependent self-governing  bodies  was  great,  and 
in  many  a  troubled  time  they  served  as  staunch 
bulwarks  of  English  liberty.  The  strength  of 
their  turreted  walls  was  more  than  supplemented 
by  the  length  of  their  purses,  and  such  immu- 
nity from  the  encroachments  of  lords  and  king 
as  they  could  not  otherwise  win,  they  contrived 
to  buy.  Arbitrary  taxation  they  generally  es- 
caped by  compounding  with  the  royal  exchequer 
in  a  fixed  sum  or  quit-rent,  known  as  the ^rma 
burgi.  We  have  observed  the  especial  privilege 
which  Henry  I.  confirmed  to  London,  of  elect- 
ing its  own  sheriff.  London  had  been  prompt 
in  recognizing  his  title  to  the  crown,  and  such 
support,  in  days  when  the  succession  was  not 

^  Loftie,  History  of  London,  vol.  i.  p.  446. 
117 


THE  CITY 

well  regulated,  no  prudent  king  could  afford  to 
pass  by  without  some  substantial  acknowledg- 
ment. It  was  never  safe  for  any  king  to  tres- 
pass upon  the  liberties  of  London,  and  through 
the  worst  times  that  city  has  remained  a  true 
republic  with  liberal  republican  sentiments.  If 
George  III.  could  have  been  guided  by  the  ad- 
vice of  London,  as  expressed  by  its  great  alder- 
man Beckford,  the  American  colonies  would 
not  have  been  driven  into  rebellion. 

The  most  signal  part  played  by  the  English 
boroughs  and  cities,  in  securing  English  free- 
dom, dates  from  the  thirteenth  century,  when 
the  nation  was  vaguely  struggling  for  represen- 
tative government  on  a  national  scale,  as  a 
means  of  curbing  the  power  of  the  Crown.  In 
that  memorable  struggle,  the  issue  of  which  to 
some  extent  prefigured  the  shape  that  the  gov- 
ernment of  the  United  States  was  to  take  five 
hundred  years  afterward,  the  cities  and  boroughs 
supported  Simon  de  Montfort,  the  leader  of 
Simon  de  ^hc  popukr  party  and  one  of  the 
Montfort  and    forcmost  among  the  heroes  and  mar- 

the  cities  ^  -^        i  •    i     i  •  i  a  i  •        i 

tyrs  or  LngJish  liberty.  Accordmgly, 
on  the  morrow  of  his  decisive  victory  at  Lewes 
in  1264,  when  for  the  moment  he  stood  master 
of  England,  as  Cromwell  stood  four  centuries 
later,  Simon  called  a  Parliament  to  settle  the 
affairs  of  the  kingdom,  and  to  this  Parliament 
he  invited,  along  with  the  lords  who  came  by 
118 


ENGLISH  BOROUGHS  AND  CITIES 

hereditary  custom,  not  only  two  elected  repre- 
sentatives from  each  rural  county,  but  also  two 
elected  representatives  from  each  city  and 
borough.  In  this  Parliament,  which  met  in  1 265, 
the  combination  of  rural  with  urban  representa- 
tives brought  all  parts  of  England  together  in 
a  grand  representative  body,  the  House  of 
Commons,  with  interests  in  common  ;  and  thus 
the  people  presently  gained  power  enough  to 
defeat  all  attempts  to  establish  irresponsible 
government,  such  as  we  call  despotism,  on  the 
part  of  the  Crown. 

If  we  look  at  the  later  history  of  English 
cities  and  boroughs,  it  appears  that,  in  spite  of 
the  splendid  work  which  they  did  for  the  Eng- 
lish people  at  large,  they  did  not  always  succeed 
in  preserving  their  own  liberties  unimpaired. 
London,  indeed,  has  always  main-  oligarchical 
tained  its  character  as  a  truly  repre-  ^^^^, 
sentative  republic.  But  in  many  Eng-  1500-1835) 
lish  cities,  during  the  Tudor  and  Stuart  peri- 
ods, the  mayor  and  aldermen  contrived  to  dis- 
pense with  popular  election,  and  thus  to  become 
close  corporations  or  self-perpetuating  oligar- 
chical bodies.  There  was  a  notable  tendency 
toward  this  sort  of  irresponsible  government  in 
the  reign  of  James  I.,  and  the  Puritans  who 
came  to  the  shores  of  Massachusetts  Bay  were 
inspired  with  a  feeling  of  revolt  against  such 
methods.  This  doubtless  lent  an  emphasis  to 
119 


THE  CITY 

the  mood  in  which  they  proceeded  to  organ- 
ize themselves  into  free  self-governing  town- 
ships. The  oligarchical  abuses  in  English  cities 
and  boroughs  remained  until  they  were  swept 
away  by  the  great  Municipal  Reform  Act  of 

The  first  city  governments  established  in 
America  were  framed  in  conscious  imitation  of 
the  corresponding  institutions  in  England.  The 
oldest  city  government  in  the  United  States  is 
that  of  New  York.  Shortly  after  the  town  was 
taken  from  the  Dutch  in  1664,  the  new  gover- 
nor, Colonel  Nichols,  put  an  end  to  its  Dutch 
form  of  government,  and  appointed  a  mayor, 
Government  five  aldcrmcn,  and  a  sheriff.  These 
ofNeVyork  o^cers  appointed  inferior  officers, 
(1686-1821)  such  as  constables,  and  little  or  no- 
thing was  left  to  popular  election.  But  in  1686, 
under  Governor  Dongan,  New  York  was  regu- 
larly incorporated  and  chartered  as  a  city.  Its 
constitution  bore  an  especially  close  resemblance 
to  that  of  Norwich,  then  the  third  city  in  Eng- 
land in  size  and  importance.  The  city  of  New 
York  was  divided  into  six  wards.  The  govern- 
ing corporation  consisted  of  the  mayor,  the 
recorder,  the  town-clerk,  six  aldermen,  and  six 
assistants.  All  the  land  not  taken  up  by  individ-i 
ual  owners  was  granted  as  public  land  to  the! 
corporation,  which  in  return  paid  into  the  British! 
exchequer  one  beaver-skin  yearly.  This  was  a] 
120 


ENGLISH  BOROUGHS  AND  CITIES 

survival  of  the  old  quit-rent  or  Jirma  burgi} 
The  city  was  made  a  county,  and  thus  had  its 
court,  its  sheriff  and  coroner,  and  its  high  con- 
stable. Other  ojfficers  were  the  chamberlain  or 
treasurer,  seven  inferior  constables,  a  sergeant- 
at-arms,  and  a  clerk  of  the  market,  who  inspected 
weights  and  measures,  and  punished  delinquen- 
cies in  the  use  of  them.  The  principal  judge 
was  the  recorder,  who,  as  we  have  just  seen,  was 
one  of  the  corporation.  The  aldermen,  assist- 
ants, and  constables  were  elected  annually  by 
the  people  ;  but  the  mayor  and  sheriff  were 
appointed  by  the  governor.  The  recorder,  town- 
clerk,  and  clerk  of  the  market  were  to  be  ap- 
pointed by  the  king,  but  in  case  the  king  neg- 
lected to  act,  these  appointments  also  were  made 
by  the  governor.  The  high  constable  was  ap- 
pointed by  the  mayor,  the  treasurer  by  the 
mayor,  aldermen,  and  assistants,  who  seem  to 
have  answered  to  the  ordinary  common  council. 
The  mayor,  recorder,  and  aldermen,  without  the 
assistants,  were  a  judicial  body,  and  held  a  weekly 
court  of  common  pleas.  When  the  assistants 
were  added,  the  whole  became  a  legislative  body 
empowered  to  enact  by-laws. 

Although  this  charter  granted  very  imperfect 
powers  of  self-government,  the  people  contrived 
to  live  under  it  for  a  hundred  and  thirty-five 

^  Jameson,  "  The  Muncipal  Government  of  New  York," 
Mag.  Amer.  Hist.,  vol.  viii.  p.  609. 
121 


THE  CITY 

years,  until  1821.  Before  the  Revolution  their 
petitions  succeeded  in  obtaining  only  a  few  un- 
important amendments/  When  the  British  army 
captured  the  city  in  September,  1776,  it  was 
forthwith  placed  under  martial  law,  and  so  re- 
mained until  the  army  departed  in  November, 
1783.  During  those  seven  years  New  York 
was  not  altogether  a  comfortable  place  in  which 
to  live.  After  1783  the  city  government  re- 
mained as  before,  except  that  the  state  of  New 
York  assumed  the  control  formerly  exercised 
by  the  British  Crown.  Mayor  and  recorder, 
town-clerk  and  sheriff,  were  now  appointed  by 
a  council  of  appointment  consisting  of  the  gov- 
ernor and  four  senators.  This  did  not  work 
well,  and  the  constitution  of  1821  gave  to  the 
people  the  power  of  choosing  their  sheriff  and 
town-clerk,  while  the  mayor  was  to  be  elected 
by  the  common  council.  Nothing  but  the  ap- 
pointment of  the  recorder  remained  in  the  hands 
of  the  governor.  Thus  nearly  forty  years  after 
the  close  of  the  War  of  Independence  the  city 
of  New  York  acquired  self-government  as  com- 
plete as  that  of  the  city  of  London,  In  1857, 
as  we  shall  see,  this  self-government  was  greatly 
curtailed,  with  results  more  or  less  disastrous. 

The  next  city  governments  to  be  organized 
in  the  American  colonies,  after  that  of  New 

^  Especially   in    the    so-called    Montgomerie   charter    of 
1730. 

122 


ENGLISH  BOROUGHS  AND  CITIES 

York,  were  those  of  Philadelphia,  incorporated 
in  1 70 1,  and  Annapolis,  incorporated  in  1708. 
These  governments  were  framed  after  ^.^^  go^grn- 
the  wretched  pattern  then  so  common  "i^nt  in  Phii- 
in  England.  In  both  cases  the  mayor,  (1^701- 
the  recorder,  the  aldermen,  and  the  '^89) 
common  council  constituted  a  close  self-electing 
corporation.  The  resulting  abuses  were  not  so 
great  as  in  England,  probably  because  the  cities 
were  so  small.  But  in  course  of  time,  especially 
in  Philadelphia  as  it  increased  in  population,  the 
viciousness  of  the  system  was  abundantly  illus- 
trated. As  the  people  could  not  elect  the  gov- 
erning corporation  or  any  of  its  members,  they 
very  naturally  and  reasonably  distrusted  it,  and 
through  the  legislature  they  contrived  so  to 
limit  its  powers  of  taxation  that  it  was  really  un- 
able to  keep  the  streets  in  repair,  to  light  them 
at  night,  or  to  support  an  adequate  police  force. 
An  attempt  was  made  to  supply  such  wants  by 
creating  divers  independent  boards  of  commis- 
sioners, one  for  paving  and  draining,  another  for 
street-lamps  and  watchmen,  a  third  for  town- 
pumps,  and  so  on.  In  this  way  responsibility 
got  so  minutely  parcelled  out  and  scattered,  and 
there  was  so  much  jealousy  and  wrangling  be- 
tween the  different  boards  and  the  corporation, 
that  the  result  was  chaos.  The  public  money 
was  habitually  wasted  and  occasionally  embez- 
zled, and  there  was  general  dissatisfaction.  In 
123 


THE  CITY 

1789  the  close  corporation  was  abolished,  and 
thereafter  the  aldermen  and  common  council 
were  elected  by  the  citizens,  the  mayor  was 
chosen  by  the  aldermen  out  of  their  own  num- 
ber, and  the  recorder  was  appointed  by  the 
mayor  and  aldermen.  Thus  Philadelphia  ob- 
tained a  representative  government. 

These  instances  of  New  York  and  Philadel- 
phia sufficiently  illustrate  the  beginnings  of 
city  government  in  the  United  States.  In  each 
case  the  system  was  copied  from  England  at  a 
time  when  city  government  in  England  was 
sadly  demoralized.  What  was  copied  was  not 
the  free  republic  of  London,  with  its  noble 
traditions  of  civic  honour  and  sagacious  public 
spirit,  but  the  imperfect  republics  or  oligarchies 
into  which  the  lesser  English  boroughs  were 
sinking,  amid  the  foul  political  intrigues  and 
corruption  which  characterized  the  Stuart 
period.  The  government  of  American  cities  in 
our  own  time  is  admitted  on  all  hands  to  be  far 
Traditions  from  satisfactory.  It  is  interesting 
ernment^"^'  ^^  obscrve  that  thc  cities  which  had 
lacking  municipal  government  before  the  Re- 

volution, though  they  have  always  had  their 
full  share  of  able  and  high-minded  citizens,  do 
not  possess  even  the  tradition  of  good  govern- 
ment. And  the  difficulty,  in  those  colonial 
times,  was  plainly  want  of  adequate  self-gov- 
ernment, want  of  responsibility  on  the  part  of 
124 


THE  GOVERNMENT  OF  CITIES 

the  public  servants  toward  their  employers  the 
people. 

§  3.  The  Government  of  Cities  in  the  United  States. 

At  the  present  day  American  municipal  gov- 
ernments are  for  the  most  part  constructed  on 
the  same  general  plan,  though  with  many  varia- 
tions in  detail.  There  is  an  executive  depart- 
ment, with  the  mayor  at  its  head.  Several  fea- 
The  mayor  is  elected  by  the  voters  cuTg°vem- 
of  the  city,  and  holds  office  generally  m^nts 
for  one  year,  but  sometimes  for  two  or  three 
years,  and  in  a  few  cities,  notably  St.  Louis  and 
Phildelphia,  even  for  four  years.  Under  the 
mayor  are  various  heads  of  departments, — 
street  commissioners,  assessors,  overseers  of  the 
poor,  etc.,  —  sometimes  elected  by  the  citizens, 
sometimes  appointed  by  the  mayor  or  the  city 
council.  This  city  council  is  a  legislative  body, 
usually  consisting  of  two  chambers,  the  alder- 
men and  the  common  council,  elected  by  the 
citizens  ;  but  in  many  small  cities,  and  a  few  of 
the  largest,  such  as  Chicago  and  San  Francisco, 
there  is  but  one  such  chamber.  Then  there  are 
city  judges,  sometimes  appointed  by  the  gov- 
ernor of  the  state,  to  serve  for  life  or  during 
good  behaviour,  but  usually  elected  by  the 
citizens  for  short  terms. 

All  appropriations  of  money  for  city  pur- 
poses are  made  by  the  city  council ;  and  as  a 
125 


THE  CITY 

general  rule  this  council  has  some  control  over 
the  heads  of  executive  departments,  which  it 
exercises  through  committees.  Thus  there  may 
be  a  committee  upon  streets,  upon  public  build- 
ings, upon  parks  or  almshouses  or  whatever  the 
municipal  government  is  concerned  with.  The 
head  of  a  department  is  more  or  less  dependent 
upon  his  committee,  and  in  practice  this  is  found 
to  divide  and  weaken  responsibihty.  The  heads 
of  departments  are  apt  to  be  independent  of 
one  another,  and  to  owe  no  allegiance  in  com- 
mon to  any  one.  The  mayor,  when  he  appoints 
them,  usually  does  so  subject  to  the  approval 
of  the  city  council  or  of  one  branch  of  it.  The 
mayor  is  usually  not  a  member  of  the  city 
council,  but  can  veto  its  enactments,  which  how- 
ever can  be  passed  over  his  veto  by  a  two  thirds 
majority. 

City  governments  thus  constituted  are  some- 
thirrg  like  state  governments  in  miniature.  The 
relation  of  the  mayor  to  the  city  council  is  some- 
what like  that  of  the  governor  to  the  state  legis- 
The  do  not  l^ture,  and  of  the  president  to  the 
seemtowork  national  congrcss.  In  theory  nothing 
could  well  be  more  republican,  or 
more  unlike  such  city  governments  as  those  of 
New  York  and  Philadelphia  before  the  Revo- 
lution. Yet  in  practice  it  does  not  seem  to  work 
well.  New  York  and  Philadelphia  seem  to  have 
heard  as  many  complaints  in  the  nineteenth 
126 


I 


THE  GOVERNMENT  OF  CITIES 

century  as  in  the  eighteenth,  and  the  same  kind 
of  complaints,  —  of  excessive  taxation,  public 
money  wasted  or  embezzled,  ill-paved  and  dirty 
streets,  inefficient  police,  and  so  on  to  the  end 
of  the  chapter.  In  most  of  our  large  cities  sim- 
ilar evils  have  been  witnessed,  and  in  too  many 
of  the  smaller  ones  the  trouble  seems  to  be  the 
same  in  kind,  only  less  in  degree.  Our  repub- 
lican government,  which,  after  making  all  due 
allowances,  seems  to  work  remarkably  well  in 
rural  districts,  and  in  the  states,  and  in  the 
nation,  has  certainly  been  far  less  successful  as 
applied  to  cities.  Accordingly  our  cities  have 
come  to  furnish  topics  for  reflection  to  which 
writers  and  orators  fond  of  boasting  the  unap- 
proachable excellence  of  American  institutions 
do  not  like  to  allude.  Fifty  years  ago  we  were 
wont  to  speak  of  civil  government  in  the  United 
States  as  if  it  had  dropped  from  heaven  or  had 
been  specially  created  by  some  kind  of  miracle 
upon  American  soil ;  and  we  were  apt  to  think 
that  in  mere  republican  forms  there  was  some 
kind  of  mystic  virtue  which  made  them  a  pan- 
acea for  all  political  evils.  Our  later  experience 
with  cities  has  rudely  disturbed  this  too  con- 
fident frame  of  mind.  It  has  furnished  facts 
which  do  not  seem  to  fit  our  self-complacent 
theory,  so  that  now  our  writers  and  speakers 
are  inclined  to  vent  their  spleen  upon  the  un- 
happy cities,  perhaps  too  unreservedly.  We 
127 


THE  CITY 

hear  them  called  "  foul  sinks  of  corruption " 
and  "  plague  spots  on  our  body  politic."  Yet 
in  all  probability  our  cities  are  destined  to  in- 
crease in  number  and  to  grow  larger  and  larger ; 
so  that  perhaps  it  is  just  as  well  to  consider  them 
calmly,  as  presenting  problems  which  had  not 
been  thought  of  when  our  general  theory  of 
government  was  first  worked  out  a  hundred 
years  ago,  but  which,  after  we  have  been  suf- 
ficiently taught  by  experience,  we  may  hope  to 
succeed  in  solving,  just  as  we  have  heretofore 
succeeded  in  other  things.  A  general  discussion 
of  the  subject  does  not  fall  within  the  province 
of  this  brief  historical  sketch.  But  our  account 
would  be  very  incomplete  if  we  were  to  stop 
short  of  mentioning  some  of  the  recent  attempts 
that  have  been  made  toward  reconstructing  our 
theories  of  city  government  and  improving  its 
Somediffi  practical  working.  And  first,  let  us 
cuities  to  be  point  out  a  few  of  the  peculiar  diffi- 
culties of  the  problem,  that  we  may 
see  why  we  might  have  been  expected,  up  to 
the  present  time,  to  have  been  less  successful 
in  managing  our  great  cities  than  in  managing 
our  rural  communities,  and  our  states,  and  our 
nation. 

In  the  first  place,  the  problem  is  compara- 
tively new  and  has  taken  us  unawares.    At  the 
time  of  Washington's  inauguration  to  the  presi- 
dency there  were  no  large  cities  in  the  United 
128 


THE  GOVERNMENT  OF  CITIES 

States.  Philadelphia  had  a  population  of  42,000 ; 
New  York  had  33,000  ;  Boston,  which  came 
next,  with  18,000,  was  not  yet  a  city.  Rapid 
Then  came  Baltimore,  with  13,000;  A^'ica^n 
while  Brooklyn  was  a  village  of  1,600  cities 
souls.  Now  these  cities  have  a  population  of 
over  6,000,000,  or  much  more  than  that  of  the 
United  States  in  1789.  And  consider  how  rap- 
idly new  cities  have  been  added  to  the  list. 
One  hardly  needs  to  mention  the  most  striking 
cases,  such  as  Chicago,  with  4,000  inhabitants 
in  1840,  and  more  than  1,800,000  in  1900;  or 
Denver,  with  its  miles  of  handsome  streets  and 
shops,  and  not  one  native  inhabitant  who  has 
reached  his  fortieth  birthday.  Such  facts  are 
summed  up  in  the  general  statement  that, 
whereas  in  1790  the  population  of  the  United 
States  was  scarcely  4,000,000,  and  out  of  each 
100  inhabitants  only  3  dwelt  in  cities  and  the 
other  97  in  rural  places ;  on  the  other  hand  in 
1880,  when  the  population  was  more  than  50,- 
000,000,  out  of  each  100  inhabitants  23  dwelt 
in  cities  and  77  in  rural  places.  But  duly  to 
appreciate  the  rapidity  of  this  growth  of  cities, 
we  must  observe  that  most  of  it  has  been  sub- 
sequent to  1840.  In  1790  there  were  six  towns 
in  the  United  States  that  might  be  ranked  as 
cities  from  their  size,  though  to  get  this  number 
we  must  include  Boston.  In  1800  the  number 
was  the  same.  By  18 10  the  number  had  risen 
129 


THE  CITY 

from  6  to  ii  ;  by  1820  it  had  reached  13  ;  by 
1830  this  thirteen  had  doubled  and  become  26  ; 
and  in  1840  there  were  44  cities  altogether. 
The  urban  population  increased  from  210,873 
in  1800  to  1,453,994  in  1840.  But  between 
1840  and  1880  the  number  of  new  cities  which 
came  into  existence  was  242,  and  the  urban  pop- 
ulation increased  to  11,318,547.  Nothing  hke 
this  was  ever  known  before  in  any  part  of  the 
world,  and  perhaps  it  is  not  strange  that  such 
a  tremendous  development  did  not  find  our 
methods  of  government  fully  prepared  to  deal 
with  it. 

This  rapidity  of  growth  has  entailed  some 
important  consequences.  In  the  first  place  it 
Some  conse-  obHges  the  city  to  make  great  outlays 
thfs"r"pid  °^  money  in  order  to  get  immediate 
growth  results.     Public  works   must  be  un- 

dertaken with  a  view  to  quickness  rather  than 
thoroughness.  Pavements,  sewers,  and  reser- 
voirs of  some  sort  must  be  had  at  once,  even 
if  inadequately  planned  and  imperfectly  con- 
structed ;  and  so,  before  a  great  while,  the  work 
must  be  done  over  again.  Such  conditions  of 
imperative  haste  increase  the  temptations  to  dis- 
honesty as  well  as  the  liability  to  errors  of 
judgment  on  the  part  of  the  men  who  admin- 
ister the  public  funds.^    Then  the  rapid  growth 

1  This  and  some  of  the  following  considerations  have  been 
ably  set  forth  and  illustrated  by  Hon.  Seth  Low,  lately  presi- 
130 


THE  GOVERNMENT  OF  CITIES 

of  a  city,  especially  of  a  new  city,  requiring  the 
immediate  construction  of  a  certain  amount  of 
public  works,  almost  necessitates  the  borrowing 
of  money,  and  debt  means  heavy  taxes.  It  is 
like  the  case  of  a  young  man  who,  in  order  to 
secure  a  home  for  his  quickly  growing  family, 
buys  a  house  under  a  heavy  mortgage.  Twice 
a  year  there  comes  in  a  great  bill  for  interest, 
and  in  order  to  meet  it  he  must  economize  in 
his  table  or  now  and  then  deny  himself  a  new 
suit  of  clothes.  So  if  a  city  has  to  tax  heavily 
to  pay  its  debts,  it  must  cut  down  its  current 
expenses  somewhere,  and  the  results  are  sure  to 
be  visible  in  more  or  less  untidiness  and  in- 
efficiency. Mr.  Low  tells  us  that  "very  few 
of  our  American  cities  have  yet  paid  in  full  the 
cost  of  their  original  water-works."  Lastly,  much 
wastefulness  results  from  want  of  foresight.  It 
is  not  easy  to  predict  how  a  city  will  grow,  or 
the  nature  of  its  needs  a  few  years  hence.  More- 
over, even  when  it  is  easy  enough  to  predict  a 
result,  it  is  not  easy  to  secure  practical  foresight 
on  the  part  of  a  city  council  elected  ^^^^  ^^ 
for  the  current  year.  Its  members  are  practical 
afraid  of  making  taxes  too  heavy  this  ""^"'^ 
year,  and  considerations  of  ten  years  hence  are 
apt  to  be  dismissed  as  "  visionary."    It  is  always 

dent  of  Columbia  College,  now  mayor  of  New  York,  in  an 
address  at  Johns  Hopkins  University,  published  in  J.  H.  U. 
Studies,  Supplementary  Notes,  No.  4. 


THE  CITY 

hard  for  us  to  realize  how  terribly  soon  ten 
years  hence  will  be  here.  The  habit  of  doing 
things  by  halves  has  been  often  commented  on 
(and,  perhaps,  even  more  by  our  own  writers 
than  by  foreigners)  as  especially  noticeable  in 
America.  It  has  doubtless  been  fostered  by  the 
conditions  which  in  so  many  cases  have  made  it 
absolutely  necessary  to  adopt  temporary  make- 
shifts. These  conditions  have  produced  a  cer- 
tain habit  of  mind. 

Let  us  now  observe  that  as  cities  increase  in 
size  the  amount  of  government  that  is  necessary 
Growth  in  tcnds  in  some  respects  to  increase. 
complexity      Whercver  there  is  a  crowd  there  is 

or  govern- 
ment in  likely  to  be  some  need  of  rules  and 

regulations.  In  the  country  a  man 
may  build  his  house  pretty  much  as  he  pleases ; 
but  in  the  city  he  may  be  forbidden  to  build  it 
of  wood,  and  perhaps  even  the  thickness  of  the 
party  walls  or  the  position  of  the  chimneys  may 
come  in  for  some  supervision  on  the  part  of  the 
government.  For  further  precaution  against 
spreading  fires,  the  city  has  an  organized  force 
of  men,  with  costly  engines,  engine-houses,  and 
stables.  In  the  country  a  board  of  health  has 
comparatively  little  to  do  ;  in  the  city  it  is  often 
confronted  with  difficult  sanitary  problems  which 
call  for  highly  paid  professional  skill  on  the  part 
of  physicians  and  chemists,  architects  and  plumb- 
ers, masons  and  engineers.  So,  too,  the  water 
132 


THE  GOVERNMENT  OF  CITIES 

supply  of  a  great  city  is  likely  to  be  a  compli- 
cated business,  and  the  police  force  may  well 
need  as  much  management  as  a  small  army. 
In  short,  with  a  city,  increase  in  size  is  sure  to 
involve  increase  in  complexity  of  organization, 
and  this  means  a  vast  increase  in  the  number 
of  officials  for  doing  the  work  and  of  details  to 
be  superintended.  For  example,  let  us  enumer- 
ate the  executive  department  and  officers  of  the 
city  of  Boston  at  the  present  time. 

There  are  three  street  commissioners  with 
power  to  lay  out  streets  and  assess  damages 
thereby  occasioned.   These  are  elected    .,   . .  . 

•'  ,  Municipal 

by  the  people.  The  following  officers  officers  in 
are  appointed  by  the  mayor,  with  the 
concurrence  of  the  aldermen  :  a  superintendent 
of  streets,  an  inspector  of  buildings,  three  com- 
missioners each  for  the  fire  and  health  depart- 
ments, four  overseers  of  the  poor,  besides  a 
board  of  nine  directors  for  the  management  of 
almshouses,  houses  of  correction,  lunatic  hospi- 
tal, etc. ;  a  city  hospital  board  of  five  members, 
five  trustees  of  the  public  library,  three  com- 
missioners each  for  parks  and  water-works  ;  five 
chief  assessors,  to  estimate  the  value  of  pro- 
perty and  assess  city,  county,  and  state  taxes  ;  a 
city  collector,  a  superindendent  of  public  build- 
ings, five  trustees  of  Mount  Hope  Cemetery, 
six  sinking  fund  commissioners,  two  record  com- 
missioners, three  registrars  of  voters,  a  registrar 

^33 


THE  CITY 

of  births,  deaths,  and  marriages,  a  city  treasurer, 
city  auditor,  city  solicitor,  corporation  counsel, 
city  architect,  city  surveyor,  superintendent  of 
Faneuil  Hall  Market,  superintendent  of  street 
lights,  superintendent  of  sewers,  superintendent 
of  printing,  superintendent  of  bridges,  five  di- 
rectors of  ferries,  harbour  master  and  ten  assist- 
ants, water  registrar,  inspector  of  provisions, 
inspector  of  milk  and  vinegar,  a  sealer  and  four 
deputy  sealers  of  weights  and  measures,  an  in- 
spector of  lime,  three  inspectors  of  petroleum, 
fifteen  inspectors  of  pressed  hay,  a  culler  of 
hoops  and  staves,  three  fence-viewers,  ten  field- 
drivers  and  pound-keepers,  three  surveyors  of 
marble,  nine  superintendents  of  hay  scales,  four 
measurers  of  upper  leather,  fifteen  measurers  of 
wood  and  bark,  twenty  measurers  of  grain,  three 
weighers  of  beef,  thirty-eight  weighers  of  coal, 
five  weighers  of  boilers  and  heavy  machinery, 
four  weighers  of  ballast  and  lighters,  ninety-two 
undertakers,  150  constables,  968  election  offi- 
cers, and  their  deputies.  A  few  of  these  officials 
serve  without  pay,  some  are  paid  by  salaries  fixed 
by  the  council,  some  by  fees.  Besides  these  there 
is  a  clerk  of  the  common  council  elected  by  that 
body,  and  also  the  city  clerk,  city  messenger, 
and  clerk  of  committees,  in  whose  election  both 
branches  of  the  city  council  concur.  The  school 
committee,  of  twenty-four  members,  elected  by 
the  people,  is  distinct  from  the  rest  of  the  city 

134 


THE  GOVERNMENT  OF  CITIES 

government,  and  so  is  the  board  of  police,  com- 
posed of  three  commissioners  appointed  by  the 
state  executive.^ 

This  long  list  may  serve  to  give  some  idea  of 
the  mere  quantity  of  administrative  work  re- 
quired in  a  large  city.    Obviously  un-    How  city 
der  such  circumstances  city  govern-    comw^^be 
ment  must  become  more  or  less  of  a    a  mystery 
mystery   to  the  great  mass  of  citizens.    They 
cannot  watch  its  operations  as  the  inhabitants  of 
a  small  village  can  watch  the  proceedings  of  their 
township  and  county  governments.    Much  work 
must  go  on  which  cannot  even  be  intelligently 
criticised  without  such  special  knowledge  as  it 
would  be  idle  to  expect  in  the  average  voter,  or 
perhaps  in  any  voter.    It  becomes  exceedingly 
difficult    for   the   taxpayer   to   understand  just 
what  his  money  goes  for,  or  how  far  the  city 
expenses  might  reasonably  be  reduced  ;    and  it 
becomes    correspondingly    easy    for   municipal 
corruption  to  start  and  acquire  a  considerable 
headway  before  it  can  be  detected  and    in  some  re- 
checked.      In  some  respects  city  gov-    sp^'^'sitis 

r  y    £3      _        more  or  a 

ernment    is  harder  to  watch    intelli-    mystery 
gently  than  the  government    of  the    LdVatSLi 
state  or  of  the  nation.   For  these  wider    government 
governments  are  to  some  extent  limited  to  work 
of  general  supervision.    As  compared  with  the 

^  Bugbee,   The    City   Government  of  Boston,  J.   H,   U. 
Studies,  v.,  iii. 

^3S 


THE  CITY 

city,  they  are  more  concerned  with  the  establish- 
ment and  enforcement  of  certain  general  princi- 
ples, and  less  with  the  administration  of  end- 
lessly complicated  details.  I  do  not  mean  to  be 
understood  as  saying  that  there  is  not  plenty 
of  intricate  detail  about  state  and  national  gov- 
ernments. I  am  only  comparing  one  thing  with 
another,  and  it  seems  to  me  that  one  chief  dif- 
ficulty with  city  government  is  the  bewildering 
vastness  and  multifariousness  of  the  details  with 
which  it  is  concerned.  The  modern  city  has 
come  to  be  a  huge  corporation  for  carrying  on 
a  huge  business  with  many  branches,  most  of 
which  call  for  special  aptitude  and  training. 

As  these  points  have  gradually  forced  them- 
selves upon  public  attention  there  has  been  a 
The  mayor  tendency  in  many  of  our  large  cities 
too^ikde^*^  toward  remodelling  their  govern- 
power  ments  on  new  principles.    The  most 

noticeable  feature  of  this  tendency  is  the  increase 
in  the  powers  of  the  mayor.  A  hundred  years 
ago  our  legislators  and  constitution-makers  were 
much  afraid  of  what  was  called  the  "  one-man 
power."  In  nearly  all  the  colonies  a  chronic 
quarrel  had  been  kept  up  between  the  gover- 
nors appointed  by  the  king  and  the  legislators 
elected  by  the  people,  and  this  had  made  the 
"  one-man  power  "  very  unpopular.  Besides,  it 
was  something  that  had  been  unpopular  in  an- 
cient Greece  and  Rome,  and  it  was  thought  to 
136 


r 


THE  GOVERNMENT  OF  CITIES 

be  essentially  unrepublican  in  principle.  Ac- 
cordingly our  great-grandfathers  preferred  to 
entrust  executive  powers  to  committees  rather 
than  to  single  individuals ;  and  when  they  as- 
signed an  important  office  to  an  individual  they 
usually  took  pains  to  curtail  its  power  and  in- 
fluence. This  disposition  was  visible  in  our 
early  attempts  to  organize  city  governments  like 
little  republics.  First,  in  the  board  of  aldermen 
and  the  common  council  we  had  a  two-cham- 
bered legislature.  Then,  lest  the  mayor  should 
become  dangerous,  the  veto  power  was  at  first 
generally  withheld  from  him,  and  his  appoint- 
ments of  executive  officers  needed  to  be  con- 
firmed by  at  least  one  branch  of  the  city  council. 
These  executive  officers,  moreover,  as  already 
observed,  were  subject  to  more  or  less  control 
or  oversight  from  committees  of  the  city  council. 
Now  this  system,  in  depriving  the  mayor  of 
power,  deprived  him  of  responsibility,  and  left 
the  responsibility  nowhere  in  particular.  In 
making  appointments  the  mayor  and  Scattering 
council  would  come  to  some  sort  of  f^g  Xe-^"' 
compromise  with  each  other  and  ex-  sponsibiiity 
change  favours.  Perhaps  for  private  reasons 
incompetent  or  dishonest  officers  would  get  ap- 
pointed, and  if  the  citizens  ventured  to  com- 
plain the  mayor  would  say  that  he  appointed  as 
good  men  as  the  council  could  be  induced  to 
confirm,  and  the  council  would  declare  their 

137 


THE  CITY 

willingness  to  confirm  good  appointments  if 
the  mayor  could  only  be  persuaded  to  make 
them. 

Then  the  want  of  subordination  of  the  dif- 
ferent executive  departments  made  it  impossible 
to  secure  unity  of  administration  or  to  carry 
out  any  consistent  and  generally  intelligible 
policy.  Between  the  various  executive  officers 
and  visiting  committees  there  was  apt  to  be  a 
more  or  less  extensive  interchange  of  favours, 
or  what  is  called  "  log-rolHng ;  "  and  sums  of 
money  would  be  voted  by  the  council  only  thus 
to  leak  away  in  undertakings  the  propriety  or 
necessity  of  which  was  perhaps  hard  to  deter- 
mine. There  was  no  responsible  head  who 
could  be  quickly  and  sharply  called  to  account. 
Each  official's  hands  were  so  tied  that  whatever 
went  wrong  he  could  declare  that  it  was  not  his 
fault.  The  confusion  was  enhanced  by  the 
practice  of  giving  executive  work  to  committees 
Committees  or  boards  instead  of  single  officers. 
foJttrudve  Benjamin  Franklin  used  to  say,  If 
purposes  you  wish  to  be  sure  that  a  thing  is 
done,  go  and  do  it  yourself.  Human  experi- 
ence certainly  proves  that  this  is  the  only  abso- 
lutely safe  way.  The  next  best  way  is  to  send 
some  competent  person  to  do  it  for  you  ;  and 
if  there  is  no  one  competent  to  be  had,  you  do 
the  next  best  thing  and  entrust  the  work  to  the 
least  incompetent  person  you  can  find.  If  you 
138 


THE  GOVERNMENT  OF  CITIES 

entrust  it  to  a  committee  your  prospect  of  get- 
ting it  done  is  diminished,  and  it  grows  less  if 
you  enlarge  your  committee.  By  the  time  you 
have  got  a  group  of  committees,  independent 
of  one  another  and  working  at  cross  purposes, 
you  have  got  Dickens's  famous  Circumlocution 
Office,  where  the  great  object  in  life  was  "  how 
not  to  do  it." 

Amid  the  general  dissatisfaction  over  the  ex- 
travagance and  inefficiency  of  our  city  govern- 
ments, people's  attention  was  first  drawn  to 
the  rapid  and  alarming  increase  of  city  increase  of 
indebtedness  in  various  parts  of  the  city  debts 
country.  A  heavy  debt  may  ruin  a  city  as  surely 
as  an  individual,  for  it  raises  the  rate  of  tax- 
ation, and  thus,  as  was  above  pointed  out,  it 
tends  to  frighten  people  and  capital  away  from 
the  city.  At  first  it  was  sought  to  curb  the 
recklessness  of  city  councils  in  incurring  lavish 
expenditures  by  giving  the  mayor  a  veto  power. 
Laws  were  also  passed  limiting  the  amount  of 
debt  which  a  city  would  be  allowed  to  incur 
under  any  circumstances.  Clothing  the  mayor 
with  the  veto  power  is  now  seen  to  have  been 
a  wise  step ;  and  arbitrary  limitation  of  the 
amount  of  debt,  though  a  clumsy  expedient,  is 
confessedly  a  necessary  one.  But  beyond  this, 
it  was  in  some  instances  attempted  to  take  the 
management  of  some  departments  of  city  busi- 
ness out  of  the  hands  of  the  city  and  put  them 

139 


THE  CITY 

into  the   hands   of  the  state  legislature.    The 

most  notable  instance  of  this  was  in  New  York 

in  iScy.  The  results,  there  and  else- 
Attempt  to  11  1  ,1  11 
cure  the  evil    where,  havc  been  generally  regarded 

fere?c'^e^-"ex-'   as  unsatisfactorv-  After  a  trial  of  thirty 
perience  of      years  the  experience  of  New  York  has 

New  York  ^  ,       ,       ^  i        •    i 

proved  that  a  state  legislature  is  not 
competent  to  take  proper  care  of  the  govern- 
ment of  cities.  Its  members  do  not  know 
enough  about  the  details  of  each  locality,  and 
consequently  local  affairs  are  left  to  the  repre- 
sentatives from  each  locality,  with  "  log-rolling  " 
as  the  inevitable  result.  A  man  fresh  from  his 
farm  on  the  edge  of  the  Adirondacks  knows 
nothing  about  the  problems  pertaining  to  elec- 
tric wires  in  Broadway,  or  to  rapid  transit  be- 
tween Harlem  and  the  Battery  ;  and  his  consent 
to  desired  legislation  on  such  points  can  very 
likely  be  obtained  only  by  favouring  some 
measure  which  he  thinks  will  improve  the 
value  of  his  farm,  or  perhaps  by  helping  him 
to  debauch  the  civil  service  by  getting  some 
neighbour  appointed  to  a  position  for  which  he 
is  not  qualified.  All  this  is  made  worse  by  the 
fact  that  the  members  of  a  state  government 
are  generally  less  governed  by  a  sense  of  re- 
sponsibility toward  the  citizens  of  a  particular 
city  than  even  the  worst  local  government  that 
can  be  set  up  in  such  a  city.^ 

^  It  is  not  intended  to  deny  that  there  may  be  instances  in 
140 


THE  GOVERNMENT  OF  CITIES 

Moreover,  even  if  legislatures  were  other- 
wise competent  to  manage  the  local  affairs  of 
cities,  they  have  not  time  enough,  amid  the 
pressure  of  other  duties,  to  do  justice  to  such 
matters.  In  1870  the  number  of  acts  passed  by 
the  New  York  legislature  was  808.  Of  these, 
212,  or  more  than  one  fourth  of  the  whole,  re- 
lated to  cities  and  villages.  The  808  acts,  when 
printed,  filled  about  2000  octavo  pages  ;  and  of 
these  the  212  acts  filled  more  than  1500  pages. 
This  illustrates  what  I  said  above  about  the 
vast  quantity  of  details  which  have  to  be  regu- 
lated in  municipal  government.  Here  we  have 
more  than  three  fourths  of  the  volume  of  state- 
legislation  devoted  to  local  affairs  ;  and  it  hardly 
need  be  added  that  a  great  part  of  these  enact- 
ments were  worse  than  worthless  because  they 
were  made  hastily  and  without  due  considera- 

which  the  state  government  may  advantageously  participate  in 
the  government  of  cities.  It  may  be  urged  that,  in  the  case 
of  great  cities,  like  New^  York  or  Boston,  many  people  who 
are  not  residents  either  do  business  in  the  city  or  have  vast 
business  interests  there,  and  thus  may  be  as  deeply  interested 
in  its  welfare  as  any  of  the  voters.  It  may  also  be  said  that 
state  provisions  for  city  government  do  not  always  work 
badly.  There  are  many  competent  judges  who  approve  of 
the  appointment  of  poHce  commissioners  by  the  executive  of 
Massachusetts.  There  are  generally  two  sides  to  a  question  ; 
and  to  push  a  doctrine  to  extremes  is  to  make  oneself  a  doc- 
trinaire rather  than  a  wise  citizen.  But  experience  clearly 
shows  that  in  all  doubtful  cases  it  is  safer  to  let  the  balance 
incline  in  favour  of  local  self-government  than  the  other  way. 
141 


THE  CITY 

tion,  —  though   not    always,   perhaps,   without 
what  lawyers  call  a  consideration.^ 

The  experience  of  New  York  thus  proved 
that  state  intervention  and  special  legislation 
did  not  mend  matters.  It  did  not  prevent  the 
Tweed  Ring  shamcful  rulc  of  the  Tweed  Ring  from 
in  New  1868  to  1 87 1,  whcn  a  small  band  of 

conspirators  got  themselves  elected  or 
appointed  to  the  principal  city  offices,  and,  hav- 
ing had  their  own  corrupt  creatures  chosen 
judges  of  the  city  courts,  proceeded  to  rob  the 
taxpayers  at  their  leisure.  By  the  time  they 
were  discovered  and  brought  to  justice,  their 
stealings  amounted  to  many  millions  of  dollars, 

^  Nothing  could  be  further  from  my  thought  than  to  cast 
any  special  imputation  upon  the  New  York  legislature,  which 
is  probably  a  fair  average  specimen  of  law-making  bodies. 
The  theory  of  legislative  bodies,  as  laid  down  in  text-books, 
is  that  they  are  assembled  for  the  purpose  of  enacting  laws 
for  the  welfare  of  the  community  in  general.  In  point  of  fact 
they  seldom  rise  to  such  a  lofty  height  of  disinterestedness. 
Legislation  is  usually  a  mad  scramble  in  which  the  final  re- 
sult, be  it  good  or  bad,  gets  evolved  out  of  compromises  and 
bargains  among  a  swarm  of  clashing  local  and  personal  inter- 
ests. The  "consideration"  may  be  anything  from  log- 
rolUng  to  bribery.  In  American  legislatures  it  is  to  be  hoped 
that  downright  bribery  is  rare.  As  for  log-rolling,  or  exchange 
of  favours,  there  are  many  phases  of  it  in  which  that  which 
may  be  perfectly  innocent  shades  off  by  almost  imperceptible 
degrees  into  that  which  is  unseemly  or  dishonourable  or  even 
criminal  ;  and  it  is  in  this  hazy  region  that  Satan  likes  to  set 
his  traps  for  the  unwary  pilgrim. 
142 


I 


THE  GOVERNMENT  OF  CITIES 

and  the  rate  of  taxation  had  risen  to  more  than 
two  per  cent. 

The  discovery  of  these  wholesale  robberies, 
and  of  other  villainies  on  a  smaller  scale  in  other 
cities,  has  led  to  much  discussion  of  the  prob- 
lems of  municipal  government,  and  to  many- 
attempts  at  practical  reform.  The  present  is 
especially  a  period  of  experiments,  yet  New  experi- 
in  these  experiments  perhaps  a  general  '"^"'^ 
drift  of  opinion  may  be  discerned.  People  seem 
to  be  coming  to  regard  cities  more  as  if  they 
were  huge  business  corporations  than  as  if  they 
were  little  republics.  The  lesson  has  been 
learned  that  in  executive  matters  too  much 
limitation  of  power  entails  destruction  of  respon- 
sibility ;  the  "ring"  is  now  more  dreaded  than 
the  "  one-man  power  ;  "  and  there  is  accordingly 
a  manifest  tendency  to  assail  the  evil  by 
concentrating  power  and  responsibility  in  the 
mayor. 

The  first  great  city  to  adopt  this  method  was 
Brooklyn.^  In  the  first  place  the  city  council 
was  simplified  and  made  a  one-cham-  Newgovem- 
bered  council  consisting  of  nineteen  "^ent  of 
aldermen.  Besides  this  council  of 
aldermen,  the  people  elect  only  three  city  offi- 
cers, —  the  mayor,  comptroller,  and  auditor. 
The  comptroller  is  the  principal  finance  officer 

^  When  Brooklyn  was  a   municipality  within  itself,   and 
before  its  consolidation  with  New  York. 


THE  CITY 

and  book-keeper  of  the  city ;  and  the  auditor 
must  approve  bills  against  the  city,  whether 
great  or  small,  before  they  can  be  paid.  The 
mayor  appoints,  without  confirmation  by  the 
council,  all  executive  heads  of  departments  ; 
and  these  executive  heads  are  individuals,  not 
boards.  Thus  there  is  a  single  police  commis- 
sioner, a  single  fire  commissioner,  a  single  health 
commissioner,  and  so  on  ;  and  each  of  these 
heads  appoints  his  own  subordinates  ;  "  so  that 
the  principle  of  defined  responsibility  permeates 
the  city  government  from  top  to  bottom."  ^  In 
a  few  cases,  where  the  work  to  be  done  is  rather 
discretionary  than  executive  in  character,  it  is 
entrusted  to  a  board  ;  thus  there  is  a  board  of 
assessors,  a  board  of  education,  and  a  board 
of  elections.  These  are  all  appointed  by  the 
mayor,  but  for  terms  not  coinciding  with  his 
own  ;  "  so  that,  in  most  cases,  no  mayor  would 
appoint  the  whole  of  any  such  board  unless  he 
were  to  be  twice  elected  by  the  people."  But 
the  executive  officers  are  appointed  by  the  mayor 
for  terms  coincident  with  his  own,  that  is,  for 
two  years.  "  The  mayor  is  elected  at  the  general 
election  in  November ;  he  takes  office  on  the 
first  of  January  following,  and  for  one  month 
the  great  departments  of  the  city  are  carried  on 
for  him  by  the  appointees   of  his  predecessor. 

^  Seth  Low  on   «♦  Municipal   Government,"   in   Bryce's 
American  Commonwealth,  vol.  i.  p.  626. 
144 


THE  GOVERNMENT  OF  CITIES 

On  the  first  of  February  it  becomes  his  duty 
to  appoint  his  own  heads  of  departments,"  and 
thus  "  each  incoming  mayor  has  the  opportunity 
to  make  an  administration  in  all  its  parts  in 
sympathy  with  himself." 

With  all  these  immense  executive  powers 
entrusted  to  the  mayor,  however,  he  does  not 
hold  the  purse-strings.  He  is  a  member  of  a 
board  of  estimate,  of  which  the  other  four  mem- 
bers are  the  comptroller  and  auditor,  with  the 
county  treasurer  and  supervisor.  This  board 
recommends  the  amounts  to  be  raised  by  taxa- 
tion for  the  ensuing  year.  These  estimates  are 
then  laid  before  the  council  of  aldermen,  who 
may  cut  down  single  items  as  they  see  fit,  but 
have  not  the  power  to  increase  any  item.  The 
mayor  must  see  to  it  that  the  administrative 
work  of  the  year  does  not  use  up  more  money 
than  is  thus  allowed  him. 

This  Brooklyn  system  has  great  merits.  It 
ensures  unity  of  administration,  it  encourages 
promptness  and  economy,  it  locates  and  defines 
responsibility,  and  it  is  so  simple  that  everybody 
can  understand  it.  The  people,  having  but  few 
officers  to  elect,  are  more  likely  to  some  of 
know  something  about  them.  Es-  '^""^"^^ 
pecially  since  everybody  understands  that  the 
success  of  the  government  depends  upon  the 
character  of  the  mayor,  extraordinary  pains  are 
taken  to  secure  good  mayors  ;  and  the  increased 

H5 


THE  CITY 

interest  in  city  politics  is  shown  by  the  fact  that 
in  Brooklyn  more  people  vote  for  mayor  than 
for  governor  or  for  president.  Fifty  years  ago 
such  a  reduction  in  the  number  of  elective 
officers  would  have  greatly  shocked  all  good 
Americans.  But  in  point  of  fact,  while  in  small 
townships  where  everybody  knows  everybody 
popular  control  is  best  ensured  by  electing  all 
public  officers,  it  is  very  different  in  great  cities 
where  it  is  impossible  that  the  voters  in  general 
should  know  much  about  the  qualifications  of  a 
long  list  of  candidates.  In  such  cases  citizens 
are  apt  to  vote  blindly  for  names  about  which 
they  know  nothing  except  that  they  occur  on  a 
Republican  or  a  Democratic  ticket ;  although, 
if  the  object  of  a  municipal  election  is  simply 
to  secure  an  upright  and  efficient  municipal 
government,  to  elect  a  city  magistrate  because 
he  is  a  Republican  or  a  Democrat  is  about  as 
sensible  as  to  elect  him  because  he  believes  in 
homoeopathy  or  has  a  taste  for  chrysanthe- 
mums.^   To  vote  for  candidates  whom  one  has 

*  Of  course  from  the  point  of  view  of  the  party  politician, 
it  is  quite  different.  Each  party  has  its  elaborate  '*  machine  " 
for  electing  state  and  national  officers  ;  and  in  order  to  be 
kept  at  its  maximum  of  efficiency  the  machine  must  be  kept 
at  work  on  all  occasions,  whether  such  occasions  are  properly 
concerned  with  differences  in  party  politics  or  not.  To  the 
party  poUtician  it  of  course  makes  a  great  difference  whether  a 
city  magistrate  is  a  Republican  or  a  Democrat.  To  him  even 
the  poUtical  complexion  of  his  mail-carrier  is  a  matter  of  im- 
146 


THE  GOVERNMENT  OF  CITIES 

never  heard  of  is  not  to  insure  popular  control, 
but  to  endanger  it.  It  is  much  better  to  vote 
for  one  man  whose  reputation  we  know,  and 
then  to  hold  him  strictly  responsible  for  the 
appointments  he  makes.  The  Brooklyn  system 
seems  to  be  a  step  toward  lifting  city  govern- 
ment out  of  the  mire  of  party  politics. 

This  system  went  into  operation  in  Brooklyn 
in  January,  1882,  and  seems  to  have  given 
general  satisfaction.  Since  then  changes  in  a 
similar  direction,  though  with  variations  in  de- 
tail, have  been  made  in  other  cities,  and  notably 
in  Philadelphia. 

In  speaking  of  the  difficulties  which  beset 
city  government  in  the  United  States,  mention 
is  often  (and  perhaps  too  exclusively)  made  of 
the  great  mass  of  ignorant  voters,  chiefly  for- 
eigners without  experience  in  self-government, 
with  no  comprehension  of  American  principles 
and  traditions,  and  with  little  or  no    Notion  that 
property  to  suffer  from  excessive  taxa-   ^ghtTo^be 
tion.    Such  people  will  naturally  have    restricted 
slight  compunctions  about  voting  away  other 
people's  money  ;  indeed,  they  are  apt  to  think 

portance.  But  these  illustrations  only  show  that  party  politics 
may  be  carried  to  extremes  that  are  inconsistent  with  the  best 
interests  of  the  community.  Once  in  a  while  it  becomes 
necessary  to  teach  party  organizations  to  know  their  place, 
and  to  remind  them  that  they  are  not  the  lords  and  masters 
but  the  servants  and  instruments  of  the  people. 


THE  CITY 

that  "  the  Government "  has  got  Aladdin's  lamp 
hidden  away  somewhere  in  a  burglar-proof  safe, 
and  could  do  pretty  much  everything  that  is 
wanted,  if  it  only  would.  In  the  hands  of  de- 
magogues such  people  may  be  dangerous ;  they 
are  supposed  to  be  especially  accessible  to  hum- 
bug and  bribes,  and  their  votes  have  no  doubt 
been  used  to  sustain  and  perpetuate  most  fla- 
grant abuses.  We  often  hear  it  said  that  the  only 
way  to  get  good  government  is  to  deprive  such 
people  of  their  votes  and  limit  the  suffrage  to 
persons  who  have  some  property  at  stake.  Such 
a  measure  has  been  seriously  recommended  in 
New  York,  but  it  is  generally  felt  to  be  im- 
possible without  a  revolution. 

Perhaps,  after  all,  it  may  not  be  so  desirable 
as  it  seems.  The  ignorant  vote  has  done  a  great 
Testimon  ^^^^  °^  harm,  but  not  all  the  harm. 
ofPennsyi-  In  1878  it  was  rcportcd  by  the  Penn- 
cipai  Com-      sylvania  Municipal  Commission,  "  as 


mission 


a  remarkable  but  notorious  fact,  that 
the  accumulations  of  debt  in  Philadelphia  and 
other  cities  of  the  state  have  been  due,  not  to 
a  non-property-holding,  irresponsible  element 
among  the  electors,  but  to  the  desire  for  specu- 
lation among  the  property-owners  themselves. 
Large  tracts  of  land  outside  the  built-up  portion 
of  the  city  have  been  purchased,  combinations 
made  among  men  of  wealth,  and  councils  be- 
sieged until  they  have  been  driven  into  making 
148 


THE  GOVERNMENT  OF  CITIES 

appropriations  to  open  and  improve  streets  and 
avenues,  largely  in  advance  of  the  real  necessi- 
ties of  the  city.  Extraordinary  as  the  statement 
may  seem  at  first,  the  experience  of  the  past 
shows  clearly  that  frequently  property-owners 
need  more  protection  against  themselves  than 
against  the  non-property-holding  class."  ^  This 
is  a  statement  of  profound  significance,  and 
should  be  duly  pondered  by  advocates  of  a  re- 
stricted suffrage. 

It  should  also  be  borne  in  mind  that,  while 
ignorant  and  needy  voters,  led  by  unscrupulous 
demagogues,  are  capable  of  doing  much  harm 
with  their  votes,  it  is  by  no  means  clear  that 
the  evil  would  be  removed  by  de-  Dangers  of  a 
Driving  them  of  the  suffrage.     It  is    restricted 

^  °        ^  ,  .  ^  suffrage 

very  unsafe  to  have  m  any  commu- 
nity a  large  class  of  people  who  feel  that  political 
rights  or  privileges  are  withheld  from  them  by 
other  people  who  are  their  superiors  in  wealth 
or  knowledge.  Such  poor  people  are  apt  to 
have  exaggerated  ideas  of  what  a  vote  can  do  ; 
very  likely  they  think  it  is  because  they  do  not 
have  votes  that  they  are  poor ;  thus  they  are 
ready  to  entertain  revolutionary  or  anarchical 
ideas,  and  are  likely  to  be  more  dangerous  ma- 
terial in  the  hands  of  demagogues  than  if  they 
were  allowed  to  vote.    Universal  suffrage  has 

^  Allinson  and  Penrose,  Philadelphia,  i68i—j88y  ;  a  His' 
tory  of  Municipal  Development,  p.  278. 
149 


THE  CITY 

its  evils,  but  it  undoubtedly  acts  as  a  safety- 
valve.  The  only  cure  for  the  evils  which  come 
from  ignorance  and  shiftlessness  is  the  aboli- 
tion of  ignorance  and  shiftlessness  ;  and  this 
is  slow  work.  Church  and  school  here  find 
enough  to  keep  them  busy  ;  but  the  vote  itself, 
even  if  often  misused,  is  a  powerful  educator; 
and  we  need  not  regret  that  the  restriction  of 
the  suffrage  has  come  to  be  practically  impos- 
sible. 

The  purification  of  our  city  governments  will 
never  be  completed  until  they  are  entirely  di- 
vorced from  national  party  politics.  The  con- 
nection opens  a  limitless  field  for  "  log-rolling," 
and  rivets  upon  cities  the  "  spoils  system," 
which  is  always  and  everywhere  incompatible 
with  good  government.  It  is  worthy 
eflrects  of  of  notc  that  the  degradation  of  so 
rouSwit'h  niany  English  boroughs  and  cities 
national  during  the  Tudor  and  Stuart  periods 

was  chiefly  due  to  the  encroachment 
of  national  politics  upon  municipal  pohtics. 
Because  the  borough  returned  members  to  the 
House  of  Commons,  it  became  worth  while  for 
the  Crown  to  intrigue  with  the  municipal  gov- 
ernment, with  the  ultimate  object  of  influencing 
parliamentary  elections.  The  melancholy  his- 
tory of  the  consequent  dickering  and  dealing, 
jobbery  and  robbery,  down  to  1835,  when  the 
great  Municipal  Corporations  Act  swept  it  all 
150 


THE  GOVERNMENT  OF  CITIES 

away,  may  be  read  with  profit  by  all  Americans.* 
It  was  the  city  of  London  only,  whose  power 
and  independence  had  kept  it  free  from  com- 
plications with  national  politics,  that  avoided 
the  abuses  elsewhere  prevalent,  so  that  it  was 
excepted  from  the  provisions  of  the  Act  of 
1835,  and  still  retains  its  ancient  constitution. 

In  the  United  States  the  entanglement  of 
municipal  with  national  politics  has  begun  to  be 
regarded  as  mischievous  and  possibly  danger- 
ous, and  attempts  have  in  some  cases  been  made 
toward  checking  it  by  changing  the  days  of 
election,  so  that  municipal  officers  may  not  be 
chosen  at  the  same  time  with  presidential 
electors.  Such  a  change  is  desirable,  but  to  ob- 
tain a  thoroughly  satisfactory  result,  it  will  be 
necessary  to  destroy  the  "  spoils  system  "  root 
and  branch,  and  to  adopt  effective  measures  of 
ballot  reform.  To  these  topics  I  shall  recur 
when  treating  of  our  national  government.  But 
first  we  shall  have  to  consider  the  development 
of  our  several  states. 

^  See  Parliamentary  Reports,  1835,  "Municipal  Cor- 
porations Commission  ;  "  also  Sir  Erskine  May,  Const.  Hist., 
vol.  ii.  chap.  xv. 


151 


VI 

THE   STATE 

§   I.   The  Colonial  Governments. 

IN  the  year  1600  Spain  was  the  only  Euro- 
pean nation  which  had  obtained  a  foot- 
hold upon  the  part  of  North  America  now 
comprised  within  the  United  States.  Spain 
claimed  the  whole  continent  on  the  strength  of 
Claims  of  the  bulls  of  1493  and  1494,  in  which 
Spain  to  the     Pope  Alexander  VI.  granted  her  all 

possession  of  .  ,         ,.  ,  , 

North  countries  to  be  discovered  to  the  west 

Amenca  ^^^  Certain  meridian  which  happens  to 
pass  a  little  to  the  east  of  Newfoundland.  From 
their  first  centre  in  the  West  Indies  the  Span- 
iards had  made  a  lodgment  in  Florida,  at  St. 
Augustine,  in  1565;  and  from  Mexico  they 
had  in  1605  founded  Santa  Fe,  in  what  is  now 
the  territory  of  New  Mexico. 

France  and  England,  however,  paid  little  heed 
to  the  claim  of  Spain.  France  had  her  own  claim 
Claims  of  t^  North  AmeHca,  based  on  the  voy- 
France  and      agcs  of  discoverv  made  by  Verrazano 

England  .  &  An.'  "        .U 

in   1524  and  Cartier  in  1534,  in  the 
course  of  which  New  York  harbour  had  been 
visited  and  the  St.  Lawrence  partly  explored. 
152 


THE  COLONIAL  GOVERNMENTS 

England  had  a  still  earlier  claim,  based  on  the 
discovery  of  the  North  American  continent  in 
1497  by  John  Cabot.  It  presently  became  ap- 
parent that  to  make  such  claims  of  any  value, 
discovery  must  be  followed  up  by  occupation 
of  the  country.  Attempts  at  colonization  had 
been  made  by  French  Protestants  in  Florida  in 
I  ^62-6 ^y  and  by  the  English  in  North  Caro- 
lina in  1584—87,  but  both  attempts  had  failed 
miserably.  Throughout  the  sixteenth  century 
French  and  English  sailors  kept  visiting  the 
Newfoundland  fisheries,  and  by  the  end  of 
the  century  the  French  and  English  govern- 
ments had  their  attention  definitely  turned  to 
the  founding  of  colonies  in  North  America. 

In  1606  two  great  joint-stock  companies  were 
formed  in  England  for  the  purpose  of  planting 
such  colonies.  One  of  these  companies  had  its 
headquarters  at  London,  and  was  called  the 
London  Company  ;  the  other  had  its  The  London 
headquarters  at  the  seaport  of  Plym-  o"Jh^co'^'. 
outh,  in  Devonshire,  and  was  called  pa"'es 
the  Plymouth  Company.  To  the  London 
Company  the  king  granted  the  coast  of  North 
America  from  34°  to  38°  north  latitude;  that 
is,  about  from  Cape  Fear  to  the  mouth  of  the 
Rappahannock.  To  the  Plymouth  Company 
he  granted  the  coast  from  41°  to  45^*;  that  is, 
about  from  the  mouth  of  the  Hudson  to  the 
eastern  extremity  of  Maine.    These  grants  were 

^53 


THE  STATE 

to  go  in  straight  strips  or  zones  across  the  con- 
tinent from  the  Atlantic  Ocean  to  the  Pacific. 
Almost  nothing  was  then  known  about  Ameri- 
can geography  ;  the  distance  from  ocean  to  ocean 
across  Mexico  was  not  so  very  great,  and  peo- 
ple did  not  realize  that  further  north  it  was  quite 
a  different  thing.  As  to  the  middle  strip,  start- 
ing from  the  coast  between  the  Rappahannock 
and  the  Hudson,  it  was  open  to  the  two  com- 
panies, with  the  understanding  that  neither  was 
to  plant  a  colony  within  lOO  miles  of  any  settle- 
ment already  begun  by  the  other.  This  meant 
practically  that  it  was  likely  to  be  controlled  by 
whichever  company  should  first  come  into  the 
field  with  a  flourishing  colony.  Accordingly 
both  companies  made  haste  and  sent  out  set- 
tlers in  1607,  the  one  to  the  James  River,  the 
other  to  the  Kennebec.  The  first  enterprise, 
after  much  suffering,  resulted  in  the  founding 
of  Virginia ;  the  second  ended  in  disaster,  and 
it  was  not  until  1620  that  the  Pilgrims  from 
Leyden  made  the  beginnings  of  a  permanent 
settlement  upon  the  territory  of  the  Plymouth 
Company. 

These  two  companies  were  at  first  organized 
under  a  single  charter.  Each  was  to  be  gov- 
erned by  a  council  in  England  appointed  by 
Their  com-  the  king,  and  these  councils  were  to 
mon  charter  appoint  councils  of  thirteen  to  reside 
in  the  colonies,  with  powers  practically  un- 
154 


THE  COLONIAL  GOVERNMENTS 

limited.  Nevertheless  the  king  covenanted  with 
his  colonists  as  follows :  "  Also  we  do,  for  us, 
our  heirs  and  successors,  declare  by  these  pre- 
sents that  all  and  every  the  persons,  being  our 
subjects,  which  shall  go  and  inhabit  within  the 
said  colony  and  plantation,  and  every  their  chil- 
dren and  posterity,  which  shall  happen  to  be 
born  within  any  of  the  limits  thereof,  shall  have 
and  enjoy  all  liberties,  franchises,  and  immuni- 
ties of  free  denizens  and  natural  subjects  within 
any  of  our  other  dominions,  to  all  intents  and 
purposes  as  if  they  had  been  abiding  and  born 
within  this  our  realm  of  England,  or  in  any 
other  of  our  dominions."  This  principle,  that 
British  subjects  born  in  America  should  be  en- 
titled to  the  same  political  freedom  as  if  born 
in  England,  was  one  upon  which  the  colonists 
always  insisted,  and  it  was  the  repeated  and  per- 
sistent attempts  of  George  IH.  to  infringe  it 
that  led  the  American  colonies  to  revolt  and  de- 
clare themselves  independent  of  Great  Britain. 

Both  the  companies  founded  in  1606  were 
short-lived.  In  1620  the  Plymouth  Company 
got  a  new  charter,  which  made  it  independent 
of  the  London  Company.  In  1624  the  king, 
James  I.,  quarrelled  with  the  London  Dissolution 
Company,  brought  suit  against  it  in    of  the  two 

1       1        •  ,   r  1  1  companies 

court,  and  obtained  rrom  the  subserv- 
ient judges  a  decree  annulling  its  charter.    In 
1635  the  reorganized  Plymouth  Company  sur- 

^S5 


THE  STATE 

rendered  its  charter  to  Charles  I.  in  pursuance 
of  a  bargain  which  need  not  here  concern  us.^ 
But  the  creation  of  these  short-lived  companies 
left  an  abiding  impression  upon  the  map  of 
North  America  and  upon  the  organization  of 
civil  government  in  the  United  States.  Let  us 
Settlement  observc  what  was  done  with  the  three 
of  the  three  stHps  or  zoncs  into  which  the  country- 
was  divided :  the  northern  or  New 
England  zone,  assigned  to  the  Plymouth  Com- 
pany ;  the  southern  or  Virginia  zone,  assigned 
to  the  London  Company  ;  and  the  central  zone, 
for  which  the  two  companies  were,  so  to  speak, 
to  run  a  race. 

In  the  northern  zone  the  colonies  of  Plym- 
outh and  Massachusetts  Bay  were  founded  by 
emigration  from  England  between  1620  and 
1630;  and  then  in  1633-38  Connecticut,  Pro- 
vidence, and  Rhode  Island  were  founded  by 
emigration  from  Massachusetts.  Presently,  in 
J  -The  1 643?  Providence  and  Rhode  Island 

northern  voluntaHly  unitcd  into  one  common- 
wealth ;  and  in  1662  New  Haven, 
originally  founded  in  1637  by  emigration  from 
England,  was  annexed  to  Connecticut  by  Charles 
II.  Certain  towns  along  the  northeast  coast, 
founded  under  royal  grants  to  individual  pro- 
prietors, were  for  some  time  practically  a  part  of 
Massachusetts,  but  in  1679  a  part  of  this  region 
^  See  my  Beginnings  of  New  England,  p.   137. 

156 


THE  COLONIAL  GOVERNMENTS 

was  erected  by  Charles  IL  into  the  royal  pro- 
vince of  New  Hampshire.  The  remainder,  un- 
der the  name  of  Maine,  was  in  1692  confirmed 
to  Massachusetts,  to  which  Plymouth  was  at 
the  same  time  annexed.  Thus,  before  the  Re- 
volution, four  of  the  original  thirteen  states  — 
Massachusetts,  Connecticut,  Rhode  Island,  and 
New  Hampshire  —  had  been  constituted  in  the 
northern  zone. 

In  1663  Charles  II.  cut  off  the  southern  part 
of  Virginia,  the  area  covering  the  present  states 
of  North  and  South  Carolina  and  Georgia,  and 
it  was  formed  into  a  new  province  called  Caro- 
lina.   In  1729  the  two  groups  of  set-    ^  ^j^^ 
tlements  which  had  grown  up  along   southern 
its  coast  were   definitively  separated 
into  North  and  South  Carolina;  and  in  1732 
the  frontier  portion  toward  Florida  was  organ- 
ized into  the  colony  of  Georgia.    Thus  four  of 
the  original  thirteen  states  —  Virginia,  the  two 
Carolinas,  and  Georgia  —  were  constituted  in 
the  southern  zone. 

To  this  group  some  writers  add  Maryland, 
founded  in  1632,  because  its  territory  had  been 
claimed  by  the  London  Company ;  but  the 
earliest  settlements  in  Maryland,  its  principal 
towns,  and  almost  the  whole  of  its  territory, 
come  north  of  latitude  38°  and  within  the  mid- 
dle zone. 

Between  the  years  16 14  and  1621  the  Dutch 

157 


THE  STATE 

founded  their  colony  of  New  Netherland  upon 
the  territory  included  between  the  Hudson  and 
Delaware  rivers,  or,  as  they  quite  naturally 
3.  The  mid-  Called  them,  the  North  and  South 
die  zone  rivcrs.  They  pushed  their  outposts 
up  the  Hudson  as  far  as  the  site  of  Albany, 
thus  intruding  far  into  the  northern  zone.  In 
1638  Sweden  planted  a  small  colony  upon  the 
west  side  of  Delaware  Bay,  but  in  1655  it  was 
surrendered  to  the  Dutch.  Then  in  1664  the 
English  took  New  Netherland  from  the  Dutch, 
and  Charles  II.  granted  the  province  to  his 
brother,  the  Duke  of  York.  The  duke  pro- 
ceeded to  grant  part  of  it  to  his  friends,  Berke- 
ley and  Carteret,  and  thus  marked  off  the  new 
colony  of  New  Jersey.  In  1681  the  region  west 
of  New  Jersey  was  granted  to  William  Penn, 
and  in  the  following  year  Penn  bought  from 
the  Duke  of  York  the  small  piece  of  territory 
upon  which  the  Swedes  had  planted  their  col- 
ony. Delaware  thus  became  an  appendage  to 
Penn's  greater  colony,  but  was  never  merged 
in  it.  Thus  five  of  the  original  thirteen  states 
—  Maryland,  New  York,  New  Jersey,  Penn- 
sylvania, and  Delaware  —  were  constituted  in 
the  middle  zone. 

As  we  have  already  observed,  the  westward 

movement  of  population  in  the  United  States 

has   largely  followed  the   parallels  of  latitude, 

and  thus  the  characteristics  of  these  three  origi- 

158 


THE  COLONIAL  GOVERNMENTS 

nal  strips  or  zones  have,  with  more  or  less 
modification,  extended  westward.  The  men  of 
New  England,  with  their  Portland  and  Salem 
reproduced  more  than  3000  miles  distant  in 
the  state  of  Oregon,  and  within  100  miles  of  the 
Pacific  Ocean,  may  be  said  in  a  certain  sense  to 
have  realized  literally  the  substance  of  King 
James's  grant  to  the  Plymouth  Company.  It 
will  be  noticed  that  the  kinds  of  local  govern- 
ment described  in  our  earlier  chapters  are 
characteristic  respectively  of  the  three  original 
zones :  the  township  system  being  exemplified 
chiefly  in  the  northern  zone,  the  county  system 
in  the  southern  zone,  and  the  mixed  township- 
county  system  in  the  central  zone. 

The  London  and  Plymouth  companies  did 
not  perish  until  after  state  governments    had 
been  organized  in  the  colonies  already  founded 
upon  their   territories.    In    16 19  the  colonists 
of  Virginia,  with   the  aid  of  the   more  liberal 
spirits  in  the  London  Company,  se-        ^^  ^^ 
cured  for  themselves  a  representative    Burgesses 
government.    To   the   governor   and    '"    "^^'"'^ 
his  council,  appointed  in  England,  there  was 
added   a  general    assembly   composed   of  two 
burgesses  from  each  "  plantation,"  ^  elected  by 

*  The  word  '*  plantation  "  is  here  used,  not  in  its  later 
and  ordinary  sense,  as  the  estate  belonging  to  an  individual 
planter,  but  in  an  earlier  sense.  In  this  early  usage  it  was 
equivalent  to   "  settlement."    It  was  used  in  New  England 

^59 


THE  STATE 

the  inhabitants.  This  assembly,  the  first  legis- 
lative body  that  ever  sat  in  America,  met  on 
the  30th  of  July,  16 19,  in  the  choir  of  the  rude 
church  at  Jamestown.  The  dignity  of  the  bur- 
gesses was  preserved,  as  in  the  House  of  Com- 
mons, by  sitting  with  their  hats  on  ;  and  after 
offering  prayer,  and  taking  the  oath  of  alle- 
giance and  supremacy,  they  proceeded  to  enact 
a  number  of  laws  relating  to  public  worship,  to 
agriculture,  and  to  intercourse  with  the  Indians. 
Curiously  enough,  so  confident  was  the  belief 
of  the  settlers  that  they  were  founding  towns, 
that  they  called  their  representatives  "  bur- 
gesses," and  down  to  1776  the  assembly  con- 
tinued to  be  known  as  the  House  of  "  Bur- 
gesses," although  towns  refused  to  grow  in 
Virginia,  and  soon  after  counties  were  organized 
in  1634  the  burgesses  sat  for  counties.  Such 
were  the  beginnings  of  representative  govern- 
ment in  Virginia. 

The  government  of  Massachusetts  is  de- 
scended from  the  Dorchester  Company  formed 
in  England  in  1623,  for  the  ostensible  purpose 
of  trading  in  furs  and  timber  and  catching  fish 
on  the  shores  of  Massachusetts  Bay.  After  a 
disastrous  beginning  this  company  was  dis- 
solved, but  only  to  be  immediately  reorganized 
on  a  greater  scale.    In  1628  a  grant  of  the  land 

as  well  as   in  Virginia  ;  thus    Salem  was    spoken  of  by  the 

court  of  assistants  in  1629  as  "  New  England's  Plantation," 

160 


THE  COLONIAL  GOVERNMENTS 

between  the  Charles  and  Merrimack  rivers  was 
obtained  from  the  Plymouth  Company  ;  and 
in  1629  a  charter  was  obtained  from 
Charles  I.  So  many  men  from  the  Massachu- 
east  of  England  had  joined  in  the  ^^^^  ^^^ 
enterprise  that  it  could  no  longer  be  fitly 
called  a  Dorchester  Company.  The  new  name 
was  significantly  taken  from  the  New  World. 
The  charter  created  a  corporation  under  the 
style  of  the  Governor  and  Company  of  Massa- 
chusetts Bay  in  New  England.  The  freemen 
of  the  Company  were  to  hold  a  meeting  four 
times  a  year ;  and  they  were  empowered  to 
choose  a  governor,  a  deputy  governor,  and  a 
council  of  eighteen  assistants,  who  were  to  hold 
their  meetings  each  month.  They  could  admin- 
ister oaths  of  supremacy  and  allegiance,  raise 
troops  for  the  defence  of  their  possessions, 
admit  new  associates  into  the  Company,  and 
make  regulations  for  the  management  of  their 
business,  with  the  vague  and  weak  proviso  that 
in  order  to  be  valid  their  enactment  must  in  no 
wise  contravene  the  laws  of  England.  Nothing 
was  said  as  to  the  place  where  the  Company 
should  hold  its  meetings,  and  accordingly  after 
a  few  months  the  Company  transferred  itself 
and  its  charter  to  New  England,  in  order  that 
it  might  carry  out  its  intentions  with  as  little 
interference  as  possible  on  the  part  of  the 
Crown. 

161 


THE  STATE 

Whether  this  transfer  of  the  charter  was  le- 
gally justifiable  or  not  is  a  question  which  has 
been  much  debated,  but  with  which  we  need 
not  here  vex  ourselves.  The  lawyers  of  the 
Company  were  shrewd  enough  to  know  that  a 
loosely  drawn  instrument  may  be  made  to  ad- 
mit of  great  liberty  of  action.  Under  the  guise 
of  a  mere  trading  corporation  the  Puritan  lead- 
ers deliberately  intended  to  found  a  civil  com- 
monwealth in  accordance  with  their  own  theories 
of  government. 

After  their  arrival  in  Massachusetts,  their 
numbers  increased  so  rapidly  that  it  became 
impossible  to  have  a  primary  assembly  of  all 
the  freemen,  and  so  a  representative  assembly 
was  devised  after  the  model  of  the  Old  English 
county  court.  The  representatives  sat  for  town- 
ships, and  were  called  deputies.  At  first  they 
Government  sat  in  the  Same  chamber  with  the 
of  Massachu-    assistants,  but  in  1 644  the  legislative 

setts ;  the  ,     .  .    ^^  ° 

General  body  was  divided  into  two  chambers, 

^"""^^  the  deputies  forming  the  lower  house, 

while  the  upper  was  composed  of  the  assistants, 
who  were  sometimes  called  magistrates.  In 
elections  the  candidates  for  the  upper  house 
were  put  in  nomination  by  the  General  Court 
and  voted  on  by  the  freemen.  In  general  the 
assistants  represented  the  common  or  central 
power  of  the  colony,  while  the  deputies  repre- 
sented the  interests  of  popular  self-government. 
162 


THE  COLONIAL  GOVERNMENTS 

The  former  was  comparatively  an  aristocratic 
and  the  latter  a  democratic  body,  and  there 
were  frequent  disputes  between  the  two. 

It  is  worthy  of  note  that  the  governing  body 
thus  constituted  was  at  once  a  legislative  and  a 
judicial  body,  like  the  English  county  court 
which  served  as  its  model.  Inferior  courts  were 
organized  at  an  early  date  in  Massachusetts, 
but  the  highest  judicial  tribunal  was  the  legisla- 
ture, which  was  known  as  the  General  Court. 
It  still  bears  this  name  to-day,  though  it  long 
ago  ceased  to  exercise  judicial  functions. 

Now  as  the  freemen  of  Massachusetts  directly 
chose  their  governor  and  deputy-governor,  as 
well  as  their  chamber  of  deputies,  and  also  took 
part  in  choosing  their  council  of  assistants,  their 
government  was  virtually  that  of  an  independ- 
ent republic.  The  Crown  could  interpose  no 
effective  check  upon  its  proceedings  except  by 
threatening  to  annul  its  charter  and  send  over 
a  viceroy  who  might  be  backed  up,  if  need  be, 
by  military  force.  Such  threats  were  sometimes 
openly  made,  but  oftener  hinted  at.  They 
served  to  make  the  Massachusetts  government 
somewhat  wary  and  circumspect,  but  they  did 
not  prevent  it  from  pursuing  a  very  independ- 
ent policy  in  many  respects,  as  when,  for  ex- 
ample, it  persisted  in  allowing  none  but  mem- 
bers of  the  Congregational  church  to  vote. 
This  measure,  by  which  it  was  intended  to 
163 


THE  STATE 

preserve  the  Puritan  policy  unchanged,  was 
extremely  distasteful  to  the  British  government. 
At  length  in  1684  the  Massachusetts  charter 
was  annulled,  an  attempt  was  made  to  suppress 
town-meetings,  and  the  colony  was  placed 
under  a  military  viceroy.  Sir  Edmund  Andros. 
After  a  brief  period  of  despotic  rule,  the  Revo- 
lution in  England  worked  a  change. 

New  charter  a  /r  i  •         i 

ofMassa-  In  1 692  Massachusetts  received  a 
chusetts  ^^^  charter,  quite  different  from  the 

old  one.  The  people  were  allowed  to  elect 
representatives  to  the  General  Court,  as  before, 
but  the  governor  and  lieutenant-governor  were 
appointed  by  the  Crown,  and  all  acts  of  the 
legislature  were  to  be  sent  to  England  for  royal 
approval.  The  general  government  of  Massa- 
chusetts was  thus,  except  for  its  possession  of  a 
charter,  made  similar  to  that  of  Virginia. 

The  governments  of  Connecticut  and  Rhode 
Island  were  constructed  upon  the  same  general 
Connecticut  P^^n  as  thc  first  government  of  Mas- 
and  Rhode  sachusctts.  Govcmors,  councils,  and 
assemblies  were  elected  by  the  people. 
These  governments  were  made  by  the  settlers 
themselves,  after  they  had  come  out  from 
Massachusetts ;  and  through  a  very  singular 
combination  of  circumstances,*  they  were  con- 
firmed by  charters  granted  by  Charles  II.  in 
1662,   soon  after  his    return    from    exile.     So 

*  See  my  Beginnings  ofNew  England,  pp.  245-249. 
164 


THE  COLONIAL  GOVERNMENTS 

thoroughly  republican  were  these  governments 
that  they  remained  without  change  until  1818 
in  Connecticut  and  until  1842  in  Rhode 
Island. 

We  thus  observe  two  kinds  of  state  govern- 
ment in  the  American  colonies.  In  both  kinds 
the  people  choose  a  representative  legislative 
assembly  ;  but  in  the  one  kind  they  also  choose 
their  governor,  while  in  the  other  kind  the  gov- 
ernor is  appointed  by  the  Crown.  We  have  now 
to  observe  a  third  kind. 

After  the  downfall  of  the  two  great  companies 
founded  in  1606,  the  Crown  had  a  way  of  hand- 
ing over  to  its  friends  extensive  tracts  counties 
of  land  in  America.  In  1632  a  charter  palatine  in 
granted  by  Charles  I.  to  Cecilius  Cal- 
vert, Lord  Baltimore,  founded  the  palatinate 
colony  of  Maryland.  To  understand  the  nature 
of  this  charter,  we  must  observe  that  among 
the  counties  of  England  there  were  three  whose 
rulers  from  an  early  time  were  allowed  special 
privileges.  Because  Cheshire  and  Durham 
bordered  upon  the  hostile  countries,  Wales  and 
Scotland,  and  needed  to  be  ever  on  the  alert, 
their  rulers,  the  earls  of  Chester  and  the  bishops 
of  Durham,  were  clothed  with  almost  royal 
powers  of  command,  and  similar  powers  were 
afterwards  granted  through  favouritism  to  the 
dukes  of  Lancaster.  The  three  counties  were 
called  counties  palatine  (/.  e.  "  palace  counties  "). 

165 


THE  STATE 

Before  1600  the  earldom  of  Chester  and  the 
duchy  of  Lancaster  had  been  absorbed  by  the 
Crown,  but  the  bishopric  of  Durham  remained 
the  type  of  an  almost  independent  state,  and 
Charter  of  the  colony  palatine  of  Maryland  was 
Maryland  modelled  after  it.  The  charter  of 
Maryland  conferred  upon  Lord  Baltimore  the 
most  extensive  privileges  ever  bestowed  by  the 
British  Crown  upon  any  subject.  He  "was  made 
absolute  lord  of  the  land  and  water  within  his 
boundaries,  could  erect  towns,  cities,  and  ports, 
make  war  or  peace,  call  the  whole  fighting  popu- 
lation to  arms  and  declare  martial  law,  levy  tolls 
and  duties,  establish  courts  of  justice,  appoint 
judges,  magistrates,  and  other  civil  officers,  exe- 
cute the  laws,  and  pardon  offenders.  He  could 
erect  manors,  with  courts-baron  and  courts -leet, 
and  confer  titles  and  dignities,  so  that  they 
differed  from  those  of  England.  He  could  make 
laws  with  the  assent  of  the  freemen  of  the  pro- 
vince, and,  in  cases  of  emergency,  ordinances 
not  impairing  life,  limb,  or  property,  without 
their  assent.  He  could  found  churches  and 
chapels,  have  them  consecrated  according  to  the 
ecclesiastical  laws  of  England,  and  appoint  the 
incumbents."  ^  For  his  territory  and  these  royal 
powers  Lord  Baltimore  was  to  send  over  to  the 
palace  at  Windsor  a  tribute  of  two  Indian  arrows 

^  Browne's  Maryland :  the  History   of  a    Palatinate,   p. 
19. 

166 


THE  COLONIAL  GOVERNMENTS 

yearly,  and  to  reserve  for  the  king  one  fifth  part 
of  such  gold  and  silver  as  he  might  happen  to 
get  by  mining.  "  The  king  furthermore  bound 
himself  and  his  successors  to  lay  no  taxes,  cus- 
toms, subsidies,  or  contributions  whatever  upon 
the  people  of  the  province,  and  in  case  of  any 
such  demand  being  made,  the  charter  expressly 
declared  that  this  clause  might  be  pleaded  as  a 
discharge  in  full."  Maryland  was  thus  almost 
an  independent  state.  Baltimore's  title  was  Lord 
Proprietary  of  Maryland,  and  his  title  and 
powers  were  made  hereditary  in  his  family,  so 
that  he  was  virtually  a  feudal  king.  His  rule, 
however,  was  effectually  limited.  The  govern- 
ment of  Maryland  was  carried  on  by  a  governor 
and  a  two-chambered  legislature.  The  governor 
and  the  members  of  the  upper  house  of  the 
legislature  were  appointed  by  the  lord  pro- 
prietary, but  the  lower  house  of  the  legislature 
was  elected,  here  as  elsewhere,  by  the  people ; 
and  in  accordance  with  time-honoured  English 
custom  all  taxation  must  originate  in  the  lower 
house,  which  represented  the  people. 

Haifa  century  after  the  founding  of  Mary- 
land, similar  though  somewhat  less  extensive 
proprietary  powers  were  granted  by  charter  of 
Charles  IL  to  William  Penn,  and  Pennsylvania 
under  them  the  colony  of  Pennsylvania  was 
founded  and  Delaware  was  purchased.  Penn- 
sylvania and  Delaware  had  each  its  house  of 
167 


THE  STATE 

representatives  elected  by  the  people  ;  but  there 
was  only  one  governor  and  council  for  the  two 
colonies.  The  governor  and  council  were  ap- 
pointed by  the  lord  proprietary,  and  as  the 
council  confined  itself  to  advising  the  governor 
and  did  not  take  part  in  legislation,  there  was 
no  upper  house.  The  legislature  was  one-cham- 
bered. The  office  of  lord  proprietary  was  he- 
reditary in  the  Penn  family.  For  about  eighty 
years  the  Penns  and  Calverts  quarrelled,  like 
true  sovereigns,  about  the  boundary-line  between 
their  principalities,  until  in  1763  the  matter  was 
finally  settled.  A  line  was  agreed  upon,  and  the 
Mason  and  survey  was  made  by  two  distinguished 
Dixon's  Une  mathematicians,  Charles  Mason  and 
Jeremiah  Dixon.  The  line  ran  westward  244 
miles  from  the  Delaware  River,  and  every  fifth 
milestone  was  engraved  with  the  arms  of  Penn 
on  the  one  side  and  those  of  Calvert  on  the 
other.  In  later  times,  after  all  the  states  north 
of  Maryland  had  abolished  slavery.  Mason  and 
Dixon's  line  became  famous  as  the  boundary 
between  slave  states  and  free  states. 

At  first  there  were  other  proprietary  colonies 
besides  those  just  mentioned,  but  in  course  of 
Other  pro-  ^^^^  ^^^  Hghts  or  powcrs  of  their  lords 
prietary  gov-  proprietary  were  resumed  by  the 
Crown.  When  New  Netherland  was 
conquered  from  the  Dutch  it  was  granted  to  the 
duke  of  York  as  lord  proprietary ;  but  after 
168 


I 


THE  COLONIAL  GOVERNMENTS 

one  and  twenty  years  the  duke  ascended  the 
throne  as  James  IL,  and  so  the  part  of  the 
colony  which  he  had  kept  became  the  royal 
province  of  New  York.  The  part  which  he  had 
sold  to  Berkeley  and  Carteret  remained  for  a 
while  the  proprietary  colony  of  New  Jersey, 
sometimes  under  one  government,  sometimes 
divided  between  two ;  but  the  rule  of  the  lords 
proprietary  was  very  unpopular,  and  in  1702 
their  rights  were  surrendered  to  the  Crown.  The 
Carolinas  and  Georgia  were  also  at  first  proprie- 
tary colonies,  but  after  a  while  they  willingly 
came  under  the  direct  sway  of  the  Crown.  In 
general  the  proprietary  governments  were  un- 
popular because  the  lords  proprietary,  who 
usually  lived  in  England  and  visited  their  colo- 
nies but  seldom,  were  apt  to  regard  their  colo- 
nies simply  as  sources  of  personal  income.  This 
was  not  the  case  with  William  Penn,  or  the 
earlier  Calverts,  or  with  James  Oglethorpe,  the 
illustrious  founder  of  Georgia  ;  but  it  was  too 
often  the  case.  So  long  as  the  lord's  rents,  fees, 
and  other  emoluments  were  duly  collected,  he 
troubled  himself  very  little  as  to  what  went  on 
in  the  colony.  If  that  had  been  all,  the  colony 
would  have  troubled  itself  very  little  about  him. 
But  the  governor  appointed  by  this  absentee 
master  was  liable  to  be  more  devoted  to  his 
interests  than  to  those  of  the  people,  and  the 
civil  service  was  seriously  damaged  by  worthless 
169 


THE  STATE 

favourites  sent  over  from  England  for  whom 
the  governor  was  expected  to  find  some  office 
that  would  pay  them  a  salary.  On  the  whole, 
it  seemed  less  unsatisfactory  to  have  the  gov- 
ernors appointed  by  the  Crown  ;  and  so  before 
the  Revolutionary  War  all  the  proprietary 
governments  had  fallen,  except  those  of  the 
Penns  and  the  Calverts,  which  doubtless  sur- 
vived because  they  were  the  best  organized  and 
best  administered. 

There  were  thus  at  the  time  of  the  Revolu- 
tionary War  three  forms  of  state  government 
in    the   American     colonies.     There 

At  the  time  i  ti  i  i  •  i        • 

of  the  Revo-  werc,  J7rj-/,  the  Republican  colonies, 
were^threr  ^"  which  thc  govcmors  were  elected 
forms  of  coio-  by  the  pcople,  as  in  Rhode  Island 
ment :  i.  and  Conncctlcut ;  secondly^  the  Pro- 
RepubUcan,  pnetary  colonies,  in  which  the  gov- 
tary,  3.  cmors  wcre  appointed  by  hereditary 

"^"^  proprietors,  as  in  Maryland,  Pennsyl- 

vania, and  Delaware ;  thirdly ^  the  Royal  colo- 
nies,^ in  which  the  governors  were  appointed  by 
the  Crown,  as  in  Georgia,  the  two  Carolinas, 
Virginia,  New  Jersey,  New  York,  Massachu- 
setts, and  New  Hampshire.  It  is  customary  to 
distinguish   the  Republican  colonies  as  Charter 

^  Or,  as  they  were  sometimes  called.  Royal  provinces.    In 
the  history  of   Massachusetts  many   writers    distinguish    the 
period  before  1692  as  the  colonial  period,  and  the  period  1692 
to  1774  as  the  provincial  period. 
170 


THE  COLONIAL  GOVERNMENTS 

colonies,  but  that  is  not  an  accurate  distinction, 
inasmuch  as  the  Proprietary  colonies  also  had 
charters.  And  among  the  Royal  colonies, 
Massachusetts,  having  been  originally  a  republic, 
still  had  a  charter  in  which  her  rights  were  so 
defined  as  to  place  her  in  a  somewhat  different 
position  from  the  other  Royal  colonies  ;  so  that 
Professor  Alexander  Johnston,  with  some  rea- 
son, puts  her  in  a  class  by  herself  as  a  Semi-royal 
colony. 

These   differences,  it  will   be   observed,  re- 
lated to  the  character  and  method  of  filling  the 
governor's  office.    In  the  Republican  colonies 
the  governor  naturally  represented  the  interests 
of   the    people,    in    the    Proprietary    in^u  three 
colonies  he  was  the  agent  of  the  Penns    f^^^  there 
or  the  Calverts,  in  the  Royal  colonies    presentative 
he  was  the  agent  of  the  king.    All  the    'JS^Jione 
thirteen  colonies  alike  had  a  legislative    could  im- 
assembly  elected  by  the  people.    The    ^°^^ 
basis  of  representation  might  be  different  in  dif- 
ferent colonies,  as  we  have  seen  that  in  Massa- 
chusetts the  delegates  represented    townships, 
whereas  in  Virginia  they  represented  counties ; 
but  in  all  alike  the  assembly  was  a  truly  repre- 
sentative body,  and  in  all  alike  it  was  the  body 
that  controlled  the  expenditure  of  public  money. 
These  representative  assemblies  arose  spontane- 
ously because  the  founders  of  the    American 
colonies  were  Englishmen  used  from  time  im- 
171 


THE  STATE 

memorial  to  tax  themselves  and  govern  them- 
selves. As  they  had  been  wont  to  vote  for  repre- 
sentatives in  England,  instead  of  leaving  things 
to  be  controlled  by  the  king,  so  now  they  voted 
for  representatives  in  Maryland  or  New  York, 
instead  of  leaving  things  to  be  controlled  by  the 
governor.  The  spontaneousness  of  all  this  is 
quaintly  and  forcibly  expressed  by  the  great  Tory 
historian  Hutchinson,  who  tells  us  that  in  the 
year  1619  a  house  of  burgesses  broke  out  in  Vir- 
ginia !  as  if  it  had  been  the  mumps,  or  original 
sin,  or  any  of  those  things  that  people  cannot 
help  having. 

This  representative  assembly  was  the  lower 
house  in  the  colonial  legislatures.  The  governor 
always  had  a  council  to  advise  with  him  and 
Thegover-  assist  him  in  his  executive  duties,  in 
nor's  council    imitation  of  the  king's  privy  council 

was  a  kind  .  •1111 

of  upper  m  England,  cut  m  nearly  all  the 
^°"^^  colonies  this  council  took  part  in  the 

work  of  legislation,  and  thus  sat  as  an  upper 
house,  with  more  or  less  power  of  reviewing  and 
amending  the  acts  of  the  assembly.  In  Penn- 
sylvania, as  already  observed,  the  council  re- 
frained from  this  legislative  work,  and  so,  until 
some  years  after  the  Revolution,  the  Penn- 
sylvania legislature  was  one-chambered.  The 
members  of  the  council  were  appointed  in  dif- 
ferent ways,  sometimes  by  the  king  or  the  lord 
proprietary,  or,  as  in  Massachusetts,  by  the  out- 
172 


THE  COLONIAL  GOVERNMENTS 

going  legislature,  or,  as   in  Connecticut,  they 
were  elected  by  the  people. 

Thus  all  the  colonies  had  a  government 
framed  after  the  model  to  which  the  people  had 
been  accustomed  in  England.    It  was 

...  ".  ,     .  The  colonial 

like  the  English  system  in  mmiature,    government 
the  governor  answering  to  the  king,    E^S'st' 
and  the  legislature,  usually  two-cham-    'em  b  min- 
bered,  answering  to  Parliament.    And 
as  quarrels  between  king  and  Parliament  were 
not  uncommon,  so  quarrels  between  governor 
and  legislature  were  very  frequent  indeed,  ex- 
cept in  Connecticut  and  Rhode  Island.    The 
royal  governors,  representing  British  imperial 
ideas  rather  than  American  ideas,  were  sure  to 
come  into  conflict  with  the  popular  assemblies, 
and   sometimes   became   the   objects   of  bitter 
popular  hatred.    The  disputes  were  apt  to  be 
concerned  with  questions  in  which  taxation  was 
involved,  such  as  the  salaries  of  crown  officers, 
the  appropriations  for  war  with  the  Indians,  and 
so  on.    Such  disputes  bred  more  or  less  popular 
discontent,   but  the   struggle  did  not   become 
flagrant  so  long  as  the  British  Parliament  re- 
frained from  meddling  with  it. 

The  Americans  never  regarded  Parliament  as 
possessing  any  rightful  authority  over  their  in- 
ternal affairs.  When  the  earliest  colonies  were 
founded,  it  was  the  general  theory  that  the 
American  wilderness   was    part  of  the    king's 

173 


THE  STATE 

private  domain  and  not  subject  to  the  control 
of  Parliament.    This  theory  lived  on  in  Amer- 

The  Amer-  ^^^'  ^^^  ^^^^  °^^  ^^  England.  On 
icans  never      the  One  hand  the  Americans  had  their 

admitted  the  i       •    i  i  •    i  i  i 

supremacy  of  own  legislatures,  which  Stood  to  them 
Parliament;     -^^    ^^^    ^^^^^    ^f  Parliament.      The 

authority  of  Parliament  was  derived  from  the 
fact  that  it  was  a  representative  body,  but  it 
did  not  represent  Americans.  Accordingly  the 
Americans  held  that  the  relation  of  each  Amer- 
ican colony  to  Great  Britain  was  like  the  relation 
between  England  and  Scotland  in  the  seven- 
teenth century.  England  and  Scotland  then  had 
the  same  king,  but  separate  Parliaments,  and 
the  English  Parliament  could  not  make  laws 
for  Scotland.  Such  is  the  connection  between 
Sweden  and  Norway  at  the  present  day ;  they 
have  the  same  king,  but  each  country  legislates 
for  itself.  So  the  American  colonists  held  that 
Virginia,  for  example,  and  Great  Britain  had 
the  same  king,  but  each  its  independent  legis- 
lature ;  and  so  with  the  other  colonies,  —  there 
were  thirteen  parliaments  in  America,  each  as 
sovereign  within  its  own  sphere  as  the  Parlia- 
ment at  Westminster,  and  the  latter  had  no 
more  right  to  tax  the  people  of  Massachusetts 
than  the  Massachusetts  legislature  had  to  tax  the 
people  of  Virginia. 

In  one  respect,  however,  the  Americans  did 
admit  that  Parliament  had  a  general  right  of 
174 


THE  COLONIAL  GOVERNMENTS 

supervision  over  all  parts  of  the  British  empire. 
Maritime  commerce  seemed  to  be  as  much  the 
affair  of  one  part  of  the  empire  as  except  in  the 
another,  and  it  seemed  right  that  it  Sdme"  °^ 
should  be  regulated  by  the  central  commerce 
Parliament  at  Westminster.  Accordingly  the 
Americans  did  not  resist  custom-house  taxes  as 
long  as  they  seemed  to  be  imposed  for  purely 
commercial  purposes  ;  but  they  were  quick  to 
resist  direct  taxation,  and  custom-house  taxes 
likewise,  as  soon  as  these  began  to  form  a  part 
of  schemes  for  extending  the  authority  of  Par- 
liament over  the  colonies. 

In   England,  on  the  other  hand,  this  theory 
that  the  Americans  were  subject  to  the  king's 
authority  but  not  to  that  of  Parlia-    in  England 
ment  naturally  became  unintelliefible    '^^■'^g''^"' 

•'         ^  O  up  the  theory 

after   the   king   himself  had  become    of  the  im- 
virtually  subject  to  Parliament.    The    premacy'of 
Stuart   kings  might   call    themselves    Parliament 
kings  by  the  grace  of  God,  but  since  1688  the 
sovereigns  of  Great  Britain  owe  their  seat  upon 
the  throne  to  an  act  of  Parliament.    To  suppose 
that   the   king's   American    subjects   were    not 
amenable  to  the  authority  of  Parliament  seemed 
like  supposing  that  a  stream  could  rise  higher 
than  its  source.    Besides,  after  1700  the  British 
empire   began   to   expand   in   all   parts  of  the 
world,  and  the  business  of  Parliament  became 
more  and  more  imperial.    It  could  make  laws 

175 


THE  STATE 

for  the  East  India  Company;  why  not,  then, 
for  the  Company  of  Massachusetts  Bay  ? 

Thus  the  American  theory  of  the  situation 
was  irreconcilable  with  the  British  theory,  and 
when  Parliament  in  1765,  with  no  unfriendly 
purpose,  began  laying  taxes  upon  the  Ameri- 
cans, thus  invading  the  province  of  the  colonial 
legislatures,  the  Americans  refused  to  submit. 
The  ensuing  quarrel  might  doubtless  have  been 
Conflict  be-     peacefully  adjusted,  had  not  the  king, 

tween  the        George  III.,  happened  to  be  enter- 
British  and  .    .  ....        .  1  •   1 

the  Ameri-      tammg  political  schemcs  which  were 
can  theories     threatened  with  ruin  if  the  Americans 

was  precip-  r  •      \  •  r  i      •        • 

itated  by  should  get  a  fair  hearmg  for  their  side 
eorge  .  ^^  ^.j^^  case.^  Thus  political  intrigue 
came  in  to  make  the  situation  hopeless.  When 
a  state  of  things  arises,  with  which  men's  estab- 
lished methods  of  civil  government  are  incom- 
petent to  deal,  men  fall  back  upon  the  primitive 
method  which  was  in  vogue  before  civil  govern- 
ment began  to  exist.  They  fight  it  out ;  and 
so  we  had  our  Revolutionary  War,  and  became 
separated  politically  from  Great  Britain.  It  is 
worthy  of  note,  in  this  connection,  that  the  last 
act  of  Parliament,  which  brought  matters  to  a 
crisis,  was  the  so-called  Regulating  Act  of  April, 
1774,  the  purpose  of  which  was  to  change  the 
government  of  Massachusetts.    This  act  pro- 

1  See  my  War  of  Independence,  pp.  58-64,  69-71  (Riv- 
erside Library  for  Young  People). 
176 


THE  TRANSITION 

vided  that  members  of  the  council  should  be 
appointed  by  the  royal  governor,  that  they 
should  be  paid  by  the  Crown  and  thus  be  kept 
subservient  to  it,  that  the  principal  executive 
and  judicial  officers  should  be  likewise  paid  by 
the  Crown,  and  that  town-meetings  should  be 
prohibited  except  for  the  sole  purpose  of  electing 
town  officers.  Other  unwarrantable  acts  were 
passed  at  the  same  time,  but  this  was  the  worst. 
Troops  were  sent  over  to  aid  in  enforcing  this 
act,  the  people  of  Massachusetts  refused  to  re- 
cognize its  validity,  and  out  of  this  political 
situation  came  the  battles  of  Lexington  and 
Bunker  Hill. 

§2.    The  Transition  from  Colonial  to  State  Gov- 
ernments. 
During  the  earlier  part  of  the  Revolutionary 
War  most  of  the  states  had  some  kind  of  pro- 
visional government.    The  case  of  Massachu- 
setts may  serve  as  an  illustration.    There,  as  in 
the  other  colonies,  the  governor  had  the  power 
of  dissolving  the  assembly.    This  was   Dissolution 
like  the  king's  power  of  dissolving   .tdTaT-^"'' 
Parliament  in  the  days  of  the  Stuarts,    liaments 
It  was   then   a  dangerous  power.    In  modern 
England  there  is  nothing  dangerous  in  a  disso- 
lution of  Parliament ;   on  the  contrary,  it  is  a 
useful  device  for  ascertaining  the  wishes  of  the 
people,  for  a  new  House  of  Commons  must  bi? 
177 


THE  STATE 

elected  immediately.  But  in  old  times  the  king 
would  turn  his  Parliament  out  of  doors,  and  as 
long  as  he  could  beg,  borrow,  or  steal  enough 
money  to  carry  on  government  according  to  his 
own  notions,  he  would  not  order  a  new  election. 
Fortunately  such  periods  were  not  very  long. 
The  latest  instance  was  in  the  reign  of  Charles  I., 
who  got  on  without  a  Parliament  from  1629  to 
1640.^  In  the  American  colonies  the  dissolu- 
tion of  the  assembly  by  the  governor  was  not 
especially  dangerous,  but  it  sometimes  made 
mischief  by  delaying  needed  legislation.  During 
the  few  years  preceding  the  Revolution,  the  as- 
semblies were  so  often  dissolved  that  it  became 
necessary  for  the  people  to  devise  some  new 
way  of  getting  their  representatives  together  to 
act  for  the  colony.  In  Massachusetts  this  end 
was  attained  by  the  famous  "  Com- 

Committees  _  •' 

ofcorre-  mittecs  of  Corrcspondence."  No  one 
spon  ence  cQuld  deny  that  town-meetings  were 
legal,  or  that  the  people  of  one  township  had  a 
right  to  ask  advice  from  the  people  of  another 
township.  Accordingly  each  township  appointed 
a  committee  to  correspond  or  confer  with  com- 
mittees from  other  townships.    This  system  was 

^  The  kings  of  France  contrived  to  get  along  without  a 
representative  assembly  from  1614  to  1789,  and  during  this 
long  period  abuses  so  multiplied  that  the  meeting  of  the  States- 
General  in  1789  precipitated  the  great  revolution  which  over- 
threw the  monarchy. 

178 


THE  TRANSITION 

put  into  operation  by  Samuel  Adams  in  1772, 
and  for  the  next  two  years  the  popular  resist- 
ance to  the  Crown  was  organized  by  these  com- 
mittees. For  example,  before  the  tea  was  thrown 
into  Boston  harbour,  the  Boston  committee 
sought  and  received  advice  from  every  town- 
ship in  Massachusetts,  and  the  treatment  of 
the  tea-ships  was  from  first  to  last  directed  by 
the  committees  of  Boston  and  five  neighbour 
towns. 

In  1774  a  further  step  was  taken.  As  Parlia- 
ment had  overthrown  the  old  government,  and 
sent  over  General  Gage  as  military  governor,  to 
put  its  new  system  into  operation,  the  people 
defied  and  ignored  Gage,  and  the  townships 
elected  delegates  to  meet  together  in  what  was 
called  a  "Provincial  Congress."  The  president 
of  this  congress  was  the  chief  execu-  provincial 
tive  officer  of  the  commonwealth,  and  Congress 
there  was  a  small  executive  council,  known  as 
the  "  Committee  of  Safety." 

This  provisional  government  lasted  about  a 
year.  In  the  summer  of  1775  the  people  went 
further.  They  fell  back  upon  their  charter  and 
proceeded  to  carry  on  their  government  as  it 
had  been  carried  on  before  1774,  except  that 
the  governor  was  left  out  altogether.  The  peo- 
ple in  town-meeting  elected  their  representa- 
tives to  a  general  assembly,  as  of  old,  and  this 
assembly  chose  a  council  of  twenty-eight  mem- 
179 


THE  STATE 

bers  to  sit  as  an  upper  house.  The  president  of 
the  council  was  the  foremost  executive  officer 
of  the  commonwealth,  but  he  had  not  the  pow- 
ers of  a  governor.  He  was  no  more  the  gov- 
ernor than  the  president  of  our  Federal  Senate  is 
the  President  of  the  United  States.  The  powers 
of  the  governor  were  really  vested  in  the  coun- 
cil, which  was  an  executive  as  well  as  a  legisla- 
Provisionai  tivc  body,  and  the  president  was  its 
govern-  chairman.    Indeed,  the   title  "  presi- 

ments ;  ^        _  '  _  r        _ 

"  goyer-        dcnt  "  is  simply  the  Latin  for  "  chair- 

nors "  and  »»     u  U        cc  'J        >»  cc     '^ 

"presi-  man,     he  who      presides      or  "sits 

dents"  before  "  an  assembly.    In  1775  it  was 

a  more  modest  title  than  "  governor,"  and  had 
not  the  smack  of  semi-royalty  which  lingered 
about  the  latter.  Governors  had  made  so  much 
trouble  that  people  were  distrustful  of  the  of- 
fice, and  at  first  it  was  thought  that  the  council 
would  be  quite  sufficient  for  the  executive  work 
that  was  to  be  done.  Several  of  the  states  thus 
organized  their  governments  with  a  council  at 
the  head  instead  of  a  governor;  and  hence  in 
reading  about  that  period  one  often  comes  across 
the  title  "  president,"  somewhat  loosely  used  as 
if  equivalent  to  governor.  Thus  in  1787  we  find 
Benjamin  Franklin  called  "  president  of  Penn- 
sylvania," meaning  "  president  of  the  council 
of  Pennsylvania."  But  this  arrangement  did  not 
prove  satisfactory  and  did  not  last  long.  It 
soon  appeared  that  for  executive  work  one  man 
180 


THE  TRANSITION 

is  better  than  a  group  of  men.  In  Massachu- 
setts, in  1780,  the  old  charter  was  replaced  by 
a  new  written  constitution,  under  which  was 
formed  the  state  government  which,  with  some 
emendations  in  detail,  has  continued  to  the  pre- 
sent day.  Before  the  end  of  the  eighteenth  cen- 
tury all  the  states  except  Connecticut  and  Rhode 
Island,  which  had  always  been  practically  inde- 
pendent, thus  remodelled  their  governments. 

These  changes,  however,  were  very  conserva- 
tive. The  old  form  of  government  was  closely 
followed.  First  there  was  the  governor,  elected 
in  some  states  by  the  legislature,  in  others  by 
the  people.  Then  there  was  the  two-chambered 
legislature,  of  which  the  lower  house  was  the 
same  institution  after  the  Revolution  that  it  had 
been  before.  The  upper  house,  or  origin  of 
council,  was  retained,  but  in  a  some-  ^^  Senates 
what  altered  form.  The  Americans  had  been 
used  to  having  the  acts  of  their  popular  assem- 
blies reviewed  by  a  council,  and  so  they  retained 
this  revisory  body  as  an  upper  house.  But  the 
fashion  of  copying  names  and  titles  from  the 
ancient  Roman  republic  was  then  prevalent,  and 
accordingly  the  upper  house  was  called  a  Sen- 
ate. There  was  a  higher  property  qualification 
for  senators  than  for  representatives,  and  gener- 
ally their  terms  of  service  were  longer.  In  some 
states  they  were  chosen  by  the  people,  in  others 
by  the  lower  house.  In  Maryland  they  were 
i8i 


THE  STATE 

chosen  by  a  special  college  of  electors,  an  ar- 
rangement which  was  copied  in  our  federal  gov- 
ernment in  the  election  of  the  President  of  the 
United  States.  In  most  of  the  states  there  was 
a  lieutenant-governor,  as  there  had  been  in  the 
colonial  period,  to  serve  in  case  of  the  gover- 
nor's death  or  incapacity  ;  ordinarily  the  lieuten- 
ant-governor presided  over  the  Senate. 

Thus  our  state  governments  came  to  be  repe- 
titions on  a  small  scale  of  the  king,  lords,  and 
commons  of  England.  The  governor  answered 
to  the  king,  with  his  dignity  very  much  cur- 
tailed by  election  for  a  short  period.  The  Senate 
answered  to  the  House  of  Lords  except  in  being 
a  representative  and  not  a  hereditary  body.  It 
was  supposed  to  represent  more  especially  that 
part  of  the  community  which  was  possessed  of 
most  wealth  and  consideration  ;  and  in  several 
states  the  senators  were  apportioned  with  some 
reference  to  the  amount  of  taxes  paid  by  differ- 
ent parts  of  the  state.^  When  New  York  made 
its  senate  a  supreme  court  of  appeal,  it  was  in 
deliberate  imitation  of  the  House  of  Lords.  On 
Likenesses  the  Other  hand,  the  House  of  Repre- 
and  differ-       scntativcs  answcrcd  to  the  House  of 

ences  be- 
tween Brit-      Commons  as  it  used  to  be  in  the  days 

Am^ican       whcn  its  powcr  was  really  limited  by 

systems  ^j^^j-  ^f  |.|^g  Upper  housc  and  the  king. 

At    the    present   day  the   English    House   of 

^  See  my  Critical  Period  of  American  History y  chap.  ii. 

182 


THE  STATE  GOVERNMENTS 

Commons  is  a  supreme  body.  In  case  of  a 
serious  difference  with  the  House  of  Lords,  the 
upper  house  must  yield,  or  else  new  peers  will 
be  created  in  sufficient  number  to  reverse  its 
vote ;  and  the  lords  always  yield  before  this 
point  is  reached.  So,  too,  though  the  veto  power 
of  the  sovereign  has  never  been  explicitly  abol- 
ished, it  has  not  been  exercised  since  1707,  and 
would  not  now  be  tolerated  for  a  moment.  In 
America  there  is  no  such  supreme  body.  The 
bill  passed  by  the  lower  house  may  be  thrown 
out  by  the  upper  house,  or  if  it  passes  both  it 
may  be  vetoed  by  the  governor  ;  and  unless  the 
bill  can  again  pass  both  houses  by  more  than  a 
simple  majority,  the  veto  will  stand.  In  most 
of  the  states  a  two-thirds  vote  in  the  affirmative 
is  required. 

§  3.    The  State  Governments. 
During  the  present  century  our  state  govern- 
ments have  undergone  more  or   less  revision, 
chiefly  in  the  way  of  abolishing  property  quali- 
fications for  office,  making  the  suffrage  univer- 
sal,  and    electing   officers   that   were    formerly 
appointed.    Only  in   Delaware  does  there  still 
remain   a   property   qualification   for    senators. 
There  is  no  longer  any  distinction  in  principle 
between  the  upper  and  lower  houses    Later  modi- 
of  the  legislature.   Both  represent  pop-    ^"''0"^ 
ulation,  the  usual  difference  being  that  the  Sen- 
183 


THE  STATE 

ate  consists  of  fewer  members  who  represent 
larger  districts.  Usually,  too,  the  term  of  the 
representatives  is  two  years,  and  the  whole 
house  is  elected  at  the  same  time,  while  the  term 
of  senators  is  four  years,  and  half  the  number 
are  elected  every  two  years.  This  system  of 
two-chambered  legislatures  is  probably  retained 
chiefly  through  a  spirit  of  conservatism,  because 
it  is  what  we  are  used  to.  But  it  no  doubt  has 
real  advantages  in  checking  hasty  legislation. 
People  are  always  wanting  to  have  laws  made 
about  all  sorts  of  things,  and  in  nine  cases  out 
of  ten  their  laws  would  be  pernicious  laws  ;  so 
that  it  is  well  not  to  have  legislation  made  too 
easy. 

The  suffrage  by  which  the  legislature  is  elected 
is  almost  universal.  It  is  given  in  all  the  states 
to  all  male  citizens  who  have  reached  the  age  of 
one  and  twenty.  In  many  it  is  given  also  to 
denizens  of  foreign  birth  who  have  declared  an 
intention  of  becoming  citizens.  In  some  it  is 
given  without  further  specification  to  every  male 
Thesuf-  inhabitant  o^YOting2.gt.  Residence  in 
^^2^  the   state   for   some    period,  varying 

from  three  months  to  two  years  and  a  half,  is 
also  generally  required ;  sometimes  a  certain 
length  of  residence  in  the  county,  the  town,  or 
even  in  the  voting  precinct,  is  prescribed.  In 
many  of  the  states  it  is  necessary  to  have  paid 
one's  poll-tax.  There  is  no  longer  any  property 
184 


THE  STATE  GOVERNMENTS 

qualification,  though  there  was  until  recently  in 
Rhode  Island.  Criminals,  idiots,  and  lunatics 
are  excluded  from  the  suffrage.  Some  states  also 
exclude  duellists  and  men  who  bet  on  elections. 
Connecticut  and  Massachusetts  shut  out  per- 
sons who  are  unable  to  read.  In  no  other  coun- 
try has  access  to  citizenship  and  the  suffrage 
been  made  so  easy. 

A  peculiar  feature  of  American  governments, 
and  something  which  it  is  hard  for  Europeans 
to  understand,  is  the  almost  complete  Separation 
separation  between  the  executive  and  fsiamrranT 
the  legislative  departments.  In  Eu-  the  executive 
ropean  countries  the  great  executive  officers  are 
either  members  of  the  legislature,  or  at  all  events 
have  the  right  to  be  present  at  its  meetings  and 
take  part  in  its  discussions  ;  and  as  they  gener- 
ally have  some  definite  policy  by  which  they  are 
to  stand  or  fall,  they  are  wont  to  initiate  legisla- 
tion and  to  guide  the  course  of  the  discussion. 
But  in  America  the  legislatures,  having  no  such 
central  points  about  which  to  rally  their  forces, 
carry  on  their  work  in  an  aimless,  rambling  sort 
of  way,  through  the  agency  of  many  standing 
committees.  When  a  measure  is  proposed  it  is 
referred  to  one  of  the  committees  for  examina- 
tion before  the  house  will  have  anything  to  do 
with  it.  Such  a  preliminary  examination  is  of 
course  necessary  where  there  is  a  vast  amount 
of  legislative  work  going  on.  But  the  private 
i8s 


THE  STATE 

and  disconnected  way  in  which  our  committee 
work  is  done  tends  to  prevent  full  and  instruc- 
tive discussion  in  the  house,  to  make  the  mass 
of  legislation,  always  chaotic  enough,  somewhat 
more  chaotic,  and  to  facilitate  the  various  evil 
devices  of  lobbying  and  log-rolling. 

In  pointing  out  this  inconvenience  attendant 
upon  the  American  plan  of  separating  the  ex- 
ecutive and  legislative  departments,  I  must  not 
be  understood  as  advocating  the  European 
plan  as  preferable  for  this  country.  The  evils 
that  inevitably  flow  from  any  fundamental 
change  in  the  institutions  of  a  country  are  apt 
to  be  much  more  serious  than  the  evils  which 
the  change  is  intended  to  remove.  Political 
government  is  like  a  plant ;  a  little  watering  and 
pruning  do  very  well  for  it,  but  the  less  its 
roots  are  fooled  with,  the  better.  In  the  Ameri- 
can system  of  government  the  independence  of 
the  executive  department,  with  reference  to  the 
legislative,  is  fundamental ;  and  on  the  whole  it 
is  eminently  desirable.  One  of  the  most  serious 
of  the  dangers  which  beset  democratic  govern- 
ment, especially  where  it  is  conducted  on  a  great 
scale,  is  the  danger  that  the  majority  for  the 
time  being  will  use  its  power  tyrannically  and 
unscrupulously,  as  it  is  always  tempted  to  do. 
Against  such  unbridled  democracy  we  have 
striven  to  guard  ourselves  by  various  constitu- 
tional checks  and  balances.  Our  written  consti- 
iS6 


THE  STATE  GOVERNMENTS 

tutions  and  our  Supreme  Court  are  important 
safeguards,  as  will  be  shown  below.  The  inde- 
pendence of  our  executives  is  another  important 
safeguard.  But  if  our  executive  departments 
were  mere  committees  of  the  legislature  —  like 
the  English  cabinet,  for  example  —  this  inde- 
pendence could  not  possibly  be  maintained;  and 
the  loss  of  it  would  doubtless  entail  upon  us 
evils  far  greater  than  those  which  now  flow 
from  want  of  leadership  in  our  legislatures.^ 
We  must  remember  that  government  is  neces- 
sarily a  cumbrous  affair,  however  conducted. 

The  only  occasion  on  which  the  governor  is 
a  part  of  the  legislature  is  when  he  signs  or  ve- 
toes a  bill.  Then  he  is  virtually  in  The  state 
himself  a  third  house.  As  an  execu-  executive 
tive  officer  the  governor  is  far  less  powerful 
than  in  the  colonial  times.  We  shall  see  the 
reason  of  this  after  we  have  enumerated  some 
of  the  principal  offices  in  the  executive  depart- 
ment. There  is  always  a  secretary  of  state, 
whose  main  duty  is  to  make  and  keep  the  re- 
cords of  state  transactions.  There  is  always  a 
state   treasurer,  and   usually  a  state   auditor  or 

^  In  two  admirable  essays  on  <*  Cabinet  Responsibility  and 
the  Constitution  "  and  "  Democracy  and  the  Constitution," 
Mr.  Lawrence  Lowell  has  convincingly  argued  that  the 
American  system  is  best  adapted  to  the  circumstances  of  this 
country.  Lowell,  Essays  on  Governme?it,  pp.  20-117, 
Boston,  1890. 

187 


THE  STATE 

comptroller  to  examine  the  public  accounts  and 
issue  the  warrants  without  which  the  treasurer 
cannot  pay  out  a  penny  of  the  state's  money. 
There  is  almost  always  an  attorney-general,  to 
appear  for  the  state  in  the  supreme  court  in  all 
cases  in  which  the  state  is  a  party,  and  in  all 
prosecutions  for  capital  offences.  He  also  ex- 
ercises some  superintendence  over  the  district 
attorneys,  and  acts  as  legal  adviser  to  the  gov- 
ernors and  the  legislature.  There  is  also  in 
many  states  a  superintendent  of  education  ;  and 
in  some  there  are  boards  of  education,  of  health, 
of  lunacy  and  charity,  bureaux  of  agriculture, 
commissioners  of  prisons,  of  railroads,  of  mines, 
of  harbours,  of  immigration,  and  so  on.  Some- 
times such  boards  are  appointed  by  the  gov- 
ernor, but  such  officers  as  the  secretary  of  state, 
the  treasurer,  auditor,  and  attorney-general  are, 
in  almost  all  the  states,  elected  by  the  people. 
They  are  not  responsible  to  the  governor,  but 
to  the  people  who  elect  them.  They  are  not 
subordinate  to  the  governor,  but  are  rather  his 
colleagues.  Strictly  speaking,  the  governor  is 
not  the  head  of  the  executive  department,  but 
a  member  of  it.  The  executive  department  is 
parcelled  out  in  several  pieces,  and  his  is  one  of 
the  pieces. 

The  ordinary  functions  of  the  governor  are 
four  in  number,    i.  He  sends  a  message  to  the 
legislature,   at  the  beginning  of  each    session, 
i88 


THE  STATE  GOVERNMENTS 

recommending  such  measures  as  he  would  Hke 
to  see  embodied  in  legislation.     i.  He  is  com- 
mander-in-chief of  the  state  militia,    r^.^^ 
and  as  such  can  assist  the  sheriff  of  emor's  fimc- 

1  .  tions  :  I .  Ad- 

a  county  m  puttmg  down  a  not,  or   visor  of  legis- 
the   President  of  the   United  States,    l^^"""^-  ^; 

Commander 

In    the   event  of  a   war.     On    such   of  state 

^1  1  militia 

occasions  the  governor  may  become  a 
personage  of  immense  importance,  as,  for  exam- 
ple, in  our  Civil  War,  when  President  Lincoln's 
demands  for  troops  met  with  such  prompt  re- 
sponse from  the  men  who  will  be  known  to 
history  as  the  great  "war  governors."  3.  The 
governor  is  invested  with  the  royal 
prerogative  of  pardoning  criminals,  or  prerogative 
commuting  the  sentences  pronounced  °  ^""^  °" 
upon  them  by  the  courts.  This  power  belongs 
to  kings  in  accordance  with  the  old  feudal  no- 
tion that  the  king  was  the  source  or  fountain 
of  justice.  When  properly  used  it  affords  an 
opportunity  for  rectifying  some  injustice  for 
which  the  ordinary  machinery  of  the  law  could 
not  provide,  or  for  making  such  allowances  for 
extraordinary  circumstances  as  the  court  could 
not  properly  consider.  In  our  country  it  is 
too  often  improperly  used  to  enable  the  worst 
criminals  to  escape  due  punishment,  just  be- 
cause it  is  a  disagreeable  duty  to  hang  them. 
Such  misplaced  clemency  is  pleasant  for  the 
murderers,  but  It  makes  life  less  secure  for  hon- 
189 


THE  STATE 

est  men  and  women,  and  in  the  less  civilized 
regions  of  our  country  it  encourages  lynch  law. 
4.  In  all  the  states  except  Rhode  Island,  Dela- 
ware, Ohio,  and  North  Carolina,  the  governor 
has  a  veto  upon  the  acts  of  the  legislature,  as 
above  explained ;  and  in  ordinary  times  this 
power,  which  is  not  executive  but  legislative, 
is  probably  the  governor's  most  important  and 
considerable  power.  In  thirteen  of  the  states 
the  governor  can  veto  particular  items  in  a  bill 
4.  Veto  for  the  appropriation  of  public  money, 
power  while  at  the  same  time  he  approves 

the  rest  of  the  bill.  This  is  a  most  important 
safeguard  against  corruption,  because  where  the 
governor  does  not  have  this  power  it  is  possible 
to  make  appropriations  for  unworthy  or  scan- 
dalous purposes  along  with  appropriations  for 
matters  of  absolute  necessity,  and  then  to  lump 
them  all  together  in  the  same  bill,  so  that  the 
governor  must  either  accept  the  bad  along  with 
the  good  or  reject  the  good  along  with  the  bad. 
It  is  a  great  gain  when  the  governor  can  select 
the  items  and  veto  some  while  approving 
others.  In  such  matters  the  governor  is  often 
more  honest  and  discreet  than  the  legislature, 
if  for  no  other  reason,  because  he  is  one  man, 
and  responsibility  can  be  fixed  upon  him  more 
clearly  than  upon  two  or  three  hundred. 

Such,  in  brief  outline,  is  the  framework  of  the 
American  state  governments.    But  our  account 
190 


THE  STATE  GOVERNMENTS 

would  be  very  incomplete  without  some  men- 
tion of  three  points,  all  of  them  especially  char- 
acteristic of  the  American  state,  and  likely  to 
be  overlooked  or  misunderstood  by  Europeans. 
Firsty  while  we  have  rapidly  built  up  one  of 
the  greatest  empires  yet  seen  upon  the  earth, 
we  have  left  our  self-government  substantially 
unimpaired  in  the   process.    This   is 

'  , .  ^      ,    .  ^  ~  .  ,  In  building 

exemplmed  m  two  ways  :  nrst,  m  the  the  state,  the 
relationship  of  the  state  to  its  towns  government 
and  counties,  and,  secondly,  in  its  re-  was  left  un- 
lationship  to  the  federal  government. 
Over  the  township  and  county  governments 
the  state  exercises  a  general  supervision  ;  in- 
deed, it  clothes  them  with  their  authority. 
Townships  and  counties  have  no  sovereignty  ; 
the  state,  on  the  other  hand,  has  many  elements 
of  sovereignty,  but  it  does  not  use  them  to  ob- 
literate or  unduly  restrict  the  control  of  the 
townships  and  counties  over  their  own  admin- 
istrative work.  It  leaves  the  local  governments 
to  administer  themselves.  As  a  rule  there  is 
only  just  enough  state  supervision  to  harmon- 
ize the  working  of  so  many  local  administra- 
tions. Such  a  system  of  government  comes  as 
near  as  possible  toward  making  all  American 
citizens  participate  actively  in  the  management 
of  public  affairs.  It  generates  and  nourishes  a 
public  spirit  and  a  universal  acquaintance  with 
matters  of  public  interest  such  as  has  probably 
191 


THE  STATE 

never  before  been  seen  in  any  great  country. 
Public  spirit  of  equal  or  greater  intensity  may 
have  been  witnessed  in  small  and  highly  edu- 
cated communities,  such  as  ancient  Athens  or 
mediaeval  Florence,  but  in  the  United  States  it 
is  diffused  over  an  area  equal  to  the  whole  of 
Europe.  Among  the  leading  countries  of  the 
world  England  is  the  one  which  comes  nearest 
to  the  United  States  in  the  general  diffusion  of 
enlightened  public  spirit  and  political  capacity 
throughout  all  classes  of  society. 

A  very  notable  contrast  to  the  self-govern-' 
ment  which  has  produced  such  admirable  results 
is  to  be  seen  in  France,  and  as  contrasts  are 
often  instructive,  let  me  mention  one  or  two 
features  of  the  French  government.  There  is 
nothing  like  the  irregularity  and  spontaneity 
there  that  we  have  observed  in  our  survey  of 
the  United  States.  Everything  is  symmetrical. 
Instructive  Francc  is  divided  into  eighty-nine 
contrast  with  departments,  most  of  them  larger  than 
the  state  of  Delaware,  some  of  them 
nearly  as  large  as  Connecticut,  and  the  admin- 
istration of  one  department  is  exactly  like  that 
of  all  the  others.  The  chief  officer  of  the  de- 
partment is  the  prefect,  who  is  appointed  by 
the  minister  of  the  interior,  at  Paris.  The  pre- 
fect is  treasurer,  recruiting  officer,  school  super- 
intendent, all  in  one,  and  he  appoints  nearly  all 
inferior  officers.  The  department  has  a  council, 
192 


THE  STATE  GOVERNMENTS 

elected  by  universal  suffrage,  but  it  has  no  power 
of  assessing  taxes.  The  central  legislature  in 
Paris  decides  for  it  how  much  money  it  shall  use 
and  how  it  shall  raise  it.  The  department  council 
is  not  even  allowed  to  express  its  views  on  polit- 
ical matters ;  it  can  only  attend  to  purely  local 
details  of  administration. 

The  smallest  civil  division  in  France  is  the  com- 
mune^ which  may  be  either  rural  or  urban.  The 
commune  has  a  municipal  council  which  elects 
a  mayor ;  but  when  once  elected  the  mayor  be- 
comes directly  responsible  to  the  prefect  of  the 
department,  and  through  him  to  the  minister  of 
the  interior.  If  these  greater  officers  do  not  like 
what  the  mayor  does,  they  can  overrule  his  acts 
or  even  suspend  him  from  office ;  or  upon 
their  complaint  the  President  of  the  Republic 
can  remove  him. 

Thus  in  France  people  do  not  manage  their 
own  affairs,  but  they  are  managed  for    j^^  ^^^^^^ 
them  by  a  hierarchy  of  officials  with    whether  it  is 
its  head  at  Paris.    This  system  was    dM^otlcIm- 
devised  by  the  Constituent  Assembly    P"'f,.°'^  ^  ''f 

-'  ,  ^      pubhc  at  the 

in  1790  and  brought  into  complete-  top,  there  is 
ness  by  Napoleon  in  1 800.  The  men  seU^'^govem^ 
who  devised  it  in  1790  actually  sup-    mentatthe 

'  -'  .  ^  .       ^        bottom. 

posed  that   they  were  mauguratmg  a    Hence  gov- 
system  of  political  freedom^  (!),  and    ^Testson 
unquestionably  it  was  a  vast  improve-    an  insecure 

I  I       .  1  ■    1       foundation 

ment  upon  the  wretched  system  which 
193 


THE  STATE 

it  supplanted  ;  but  as  contrasted  with  American 
methods  and  institutions,  it  is  difficult  to  call 
it  anything  else  than  a  highly  centralized  des- 
potism. It  has  gone  on  without  essential  change 
through  all  the  revolutions  which  have  over- 
taken France  since  1800.  The  people  have 
from  time  to  time  overthrown  an  unpopular 
government  at  Paris,  but  they  have  never  as- 
sumed the  direct  control  of  their  own  affairs. 

Hence  it  is  commonly  remarked  that  while 
the  general  intelligence  of  the  French  people  is 
very  high,  their  intelligence  in  political  matters 
is,  comparatively  speaking,  very  low.  Some  per- 
sons try  to  explain  this  by  a  reference  to  peculi- 
arities of  race.  But  if  we  Americans  were  to  set 
about  giving  to  the  state  governments  things  to 
do  that  had  better  be  done  by  counties  and  towns, 
and  giving  the  federal  government  things  to  do 
that  had  better  be  done  by  the  states,  it  would 
not  take  many  generations  to  dull  the  keen 
edge  of  our  political  capacity.  We  should  lose 
it  as  inevitably  as  the  most  consummate  of  pian- 
ists will  lose  his  facility  if  he  stops  practising. 
It  is  therefore  a  fact  of  cardinal  importance  that 
in  the  United  States  the  local  governments  of 
township,  county,  and  city  are  left  to  adminis- 
ter themselves  instead  of  being  administered  by 
a  great  bureau  with  its  head  at  the  state  capital. 
In  a  political  society  thus  constituted  from  the 
beginning  it  has  proved  possible  to  build  up 
194 


THE  STATE  GOVERNMENTS 

our  Federal  Union,  in  which  the  states,  while 
for  certain  purposes  indissolubly  united,  at  the 
same  time  for  many  other  purposes  retain  their 
self-government  intact.  As  in  the  case  of  other 
aggregates,  the  nature  of  the  American  political 
aggregate  has  been  determined  by  the  nature  of 
its  political  units. 

Secondly^  let  us  observe  how  great  are  the 
functions  retained  by  our  states  under  the  con- 
ditions of  our  Federal  Union.  The  powers 
granted  to  our  federal  government,  such  as  the 
control  over  international  questions,  war  and 
peace,  the  military  forces,  the  coinage,  patents 
and  copyrights,  and  the  regulation  of    ,, 

i  J      o         ^  O  J       •   1       Vastness  of 

commerce  between  the  states  and  with  thefiinctions 
foreign  countries,  —  all  these  are  pow-  ;h?s';i''iii 
ers  relating  to  matters  that  affect  all  the   t^e  Ameri- 

-  ,  ,  ,  111  '^'^^  Union 

States,  but  could  not  be  regulated  har- 
moniously by  the  separate  action  of  the  states. 
In  order  the  more  completely  to  debar  the  states 
from  meddling  with  such  matters,  they  are  ex- 
pressly prohibited  from  entering  into  agree- 
ments with  each  other  or  with  a  foreign  power ; 
they  cannot  engage  in  war,  save  in  case  of  ac- 
tual invasion  or  such  imminent  danger  as  admits 
of  no  delay  ;  without  consent  of  Congress  they 
cannot  keep  a  military  or  naval  force  in  time  of 
peace,  or  impose  custom-house  duties.  Besides 
all  this  they  are  prohibited  from  granting  titles 
of  nobility,  coining  money,  emitting  bills  of 

195 


THE  STATE 

credit,  making  anything  but  gold  and  silver  coin 
a  tender  in  payment  of  debts,  passing  bills  of 
attainder,  ex  post  facto  laws,  or  laws  impairing 
the  obligation  of  contracts.  The  force  of  these 
latter  restrictions  will  be  explained  hereafter. 
Such  are  the  limitations  of  sovereignty  imposed 
upon  the  states  within  the  Federal  Union. 

"  Compared  with  the  vast  prerogatives  of  the 
state  legislatures,  these  limitations  seem  small 
enough.  All  the  civil  and  religious  rights  of 
our  citizens  depend  upon  state  legislation  ;  the 
education  of  the  people  is  in  the  care  of  the 
states  ;  with  them  rests  the  regulation  of  the 
suffrage  ;  they  prescribe  the  rules  of  marriage, 
the  legal  relations  of  husband  and  wife,  of  par- 
ent and  child ;  they  determine  the  powers  of 
masters  over  servants  and  the  whole  law  of  prin- 
cipal and  agent,  which  is  so  vital  a  matter  in  all 
business  transactions ;  they  regulate  partnership, 
debt  and  credit,  insurance  ;  they  constitute  all 
corporations,  both  private  and  municipal,  ex- 
cept such  as  specially  fulfil  the  financial  or  other 
specific  functions  of  the  federal  government ; 
they  control  the  possession,  distribution,  and 
use  of  property,  the  exercise  of  trades,  and  all 
contract  relations  ;  and  they  formulate  and  ad- 
minister all  criminal  law,  except  only  that  which 
concerns  crimes  committed  against  the  United 
States,  on  the  high  seas,  or  against  the  law  of 
nations.  Space  would  fail  in  which  to  enumer- 
196 


I 


THE  STATE  GOVERNMENTS 

ate  the  particulars  of  this  vast  range  of  power ; 
to  detail  its  parts  would  be  to  catalogue  all  social 
and  business  relationships,  to  examine  all  the 
foundations  of  law  and  order."  ^ 

This  enumeration,  by  Mr.  Woodrow  Wilson, 
is  so  much  to  the  point  that  I  content  myself 
with  transcribing  it.  A  very  remark-  lUustration 
able  illustration  of  the  preponderant  En^nsJ""' 
part  played  by  state  law  in  America  history 
is  given  by  Mr.  Wilson,  in  pursuance  of  the 
suggestion  of  Mr.  Franklin  Jameson.^  Con- 
sider the  most  important  subjects  of  legislation 
in  England  during  the  present  century,  the 
subjects  which  make  up  almost  the  entire  con- 
stitutional history  of  England  for  eighty  years. 
These  subjects  are  "  Catholic  emancipation, 
parliamentary  reform,  the  abolition  of  slavery, 
the  amendment  of  the  poor-laws,  the  reform 
of  municipal  corporations,  the  repeal  of  the 
corn  laws,  the  admission  of  Jews  to  Parliament, 
the  disestablishment  of  the  Irish  church,  the 
alteration  of  the  Irish  land  laws,  the  establish- 
ment of  national  education,  the  introduction  of 
the  ballot,  and  the  reform  of  the  criminal  law." 
In  the  United  States  only  two  of  these  twelve 
great  subjects  could  be  dealt  with  by  the  federal 

1  Woodrow  Wilson,    The  State :   Elements  of  Historical 
and  Practical  Politics,  p.  437. 

'  Jameson,  The  Study  of  the  Constitutional  and  Political 
History  of  the  States,  J.  H.  U.  Studies,  IV.,  v. 
197 


THE  STATE 

government :  the  repeal  of  the  corn  laws,  as 
being  a  question  of  national  revenue  and  cus- 
tom-house duties,  and  the  abolition  of  slavery, 
by  virtue  of  a  constitutional  amendment  em- 
bodying some  of  the  results  of  our  Civil  War. 
All  the  other  questions  enumerated  would  have 
to  be  dealt  with  by  our  state  governments ; 
and  before  the  war  that  was  the  case  with  the 
slavery  question  also.  A  more  vivid  illustra- 
tion could  not  be  asked  for. 

How  complete  is  the  circle  of  points  in  which 
the  state  touches  the  life  of  the  American  citi- 
,  ,      ,        zen,  we  may  see  in  the  fact  that  our 

Independence  ■'  •      i- 

of  the  state  statc  courts  make  a  complete  judi- 
courts  ciary  system,  from  top  to  bottom  in- 

dependent of  the  federal  courts.  An  appeal 
may  be  carried  from  a  state  court  to  a  federal 
court  in  cases  which  are  found  to  involve  points 
of  federal  law,  or  in  suits  arising  between  citi- 
zens of  different  states,  or  where  foreign  am- 
bassadors are  concerned.  Except  for  such  cases 
the  state  courts  make  up  a  complete  judiciary 
world  of  their  own,  quite  outside  the  sphere  of 
the  United  States  courts. 

We  have  already  had  something  to  say  about 
courts  in  connection  with  those  primitive  areas 
for  the  administration  of  justice,  the  hundred 
and  the  county.  In  our  states  there  are  gener- 
ally four  grades  of  courts.  There  are,  first,  the 
justices  of  the  peace^  with  jurisdiction  over  "petty 
198 


THE  STATE  GOVERNMENTS 

police  offences  and  civil  suits  for  trifling  sums." 
They  also  conduct  preliminary  hearings  in  cases 
where  persons  are  accused  of  serious  crimes, 
and  when  the  evidence  seems  to  warrant  it  they 
may  commit  the  accused  person  for  trial  before 
a  higher  court.  The  mayor's  court  in  a  city 
usually  has  jurisdiction  similar  to  that  of  justices 
of  the  peace.  Secondly,  there  are  county  and  mu- 
nicipal court  St  which  hear  appeals  from  justices 
of  the  peace  and  from  mayor's  courts,  and  have 
original  jurisdiction  over  a  more  important 
grade  of  civil  and  criminal  cases.  Thirdly,  there 
are    superior   courts,   having    original  .    . 

.       t     .  ,  .  °  Constitution 

jurisdiction  over  the  most  important  of  the  state 
cases  and  over  wider  areas  of  country,  *^°""^ 
so  that  they  do  not  confine  their  sessions  to 
one  place,  but  move  about  from  place  to  place, 
like  the  English  justices  in  eyre.  Cases  are  car- 
ried up,  on  appeal,  from  the  lower  to  the  supe- 
rior court.  Fourthly,  there  is  in  every  state  a 
supreme  courts  which  generally  has  no  original 
jurisdiction,  but  only  hears  appeals  from  the 
decisions  of  the  other  courts.  In  New  York 
there  is  a  "supremest  "  court,  styled  the  court 
of  appeals  J  v^Kxch.  has  the  power  of  revising  sun- 
dry judgments  of  the  supreme  court ;  and  there 
is  something  similar  in  New  Jersey,  Illinois, 
Kentucky,  and  Louisiana.* 

In  the  thirteen  colonies  the  judges  were  ap- 

*  Wilson,  The  State,  pp.  509-513. 
199 


THE  STATE 

pointed  by  the  governor,  with  or  without  the 
consent  of  the  council,  and  they  held  office 
during  life  or  good  behaviour.  Among  the 
changes  made  in  our  state  constitutions  since 
the  Revolution,  there  have  been  few  more  im- 
portant than  those  which  have  affected  the 
position  of  the  judges.  In  most  of  the  states 
they  are  now  elected  by  the  people  for  a  term 
of  years,  sometimes  as  short  as  two  years. 
There  is  a  growing  feeling  that  this  change  was 
a  mistake.  It  seems  to  have  lowered  the  gen- 
eral character  of  the  judiciary.  The  change  was 
made  by  reasoning  from  analogy :  it  was  sup- 
posed that  in  a  free  country  all  offices 

Elective  3n<l 

appointive       ought   to   be   clcctivc  and  for   short 
judges  terms.    But  the  case  of  a  judge  is  not 

really  analogous  to  that  of  executive  officers, 
like  mayors  and  governors  and  presidents.  The 
history  of  popular  liberty  is  much  older  than 
the  history  of  the  United  States,  and  it  would 
be  difficult  to  point  to  an  instance  in  which 
popular  liberty  has  ever  suffered  from  the  life 
tenure  of  judges.  On  the  contrary,  the  judge 
ought  to  be  as  independent  as  possible  of  all 
transient  phases  of  popular  sentiment,  and 
American  experience  during  the  past  century 
seems  to  teach  us  that  in  the  few  states  where 
the  appointing  of  judges  during  life  or  good 
behaviour  has  prevailed,  the  administration  of 
justice  has  been  better  than  in  the  states  where 
200 


THE  STATE  GOVERNMENTS 

the  judges  have  been  elected  for  specified  terms. 
Since  1869  there  has  been  a  marked  tendency 
toward  lengthening  the  terms  of  elected  judges, 
and  in  several  states  there  has  been  a  return  to 
the  old  method  of  appointing  judges  by  the 
governor,  subject  to  confirmation  by  the  senate.^ 
It  is  one  of  the  excellent  features  of  our  system 
of  federal  government,  that  the  several  states 
can  thus  try  experiments  each  for  itself  and  learn 
by  comparison  of  results.  When  things  are  all 
trimmed  down  to  a  dead  level  of  uniformity  by 
the  central  power,  as  in  France,  a  prolific  source 
of  valuable  experiences  is  cut  oflF  and  shut  up. 

^  For  details,  see  the  admirable  monograph  of  Henry  Hitch- 
cock, American  State  Constitutions,  p.  53. 


201 


VII 
WRITTEN  CONSTITUTIONS 

TOWARD  the  close  of  the  preceding 
chapter^  I  spoke  of  three  points  es- 
pecially characteristic  of  the  American 
state,  and  I  went  on  to  mention  two  of  them. 
The  third  point  which  I  had  in  mind  is  so  re- 
markable and  important  as  to  require  a  chapter 
intheAmer-  ^^^  ^^  itself.  In  the  American  state 
ican  state  the  legislature  is  not  supreme,  but  has 
power  above  Hmits  to  its  authority  prescribed  by  a 
the  legislature  ^j-ittcn  document,  known  as  the  Con- 
stitution ;  and  if  the  legislature  happens  to  pass 
a  law  which  violates  the  constitution,  then  when- 
ever a  specific  case  happens  to  arise  in  which 
this  statute  is  involved,  it  can  be  brought  before 
the  courts,  and  the  decision  of  the  court,  if 
adverse  to  the  statute,  annuls  it  and  renders  it 
of  no  effect.  The  importance  of  this  feature  of 
civil  government  in  the  United  States  can  hardly 
be  overrated.  It  marks  a  momentous  advance 
in  civilization,  and  it  is  especially  interesting  as 
being  peculiarly  American.  Almost  everything 
else  in  our  fundamental  institutions  was  brought 

^  See  above,  p.  191. 

ao2 


4 


WRITTEN  CONSTITUTIONS 

by  our  forefathers  in  a  more  or  less  highly  de- 
veloped condition  from  England  ;  but  the  de- 
velopment of  the  written  constitution,  with  the 
consequent  relation  of  the  courts  to  the  law- 
making power,  has  gone  on  entirely  upon 
American  soil. 

The  germs  of  the  written  constitution  existed 
a  great  while  ago.  Perhaps  it  would  not  be  easy 
to  say  just  when  they  began  to  exist.  It  was 
formerly  supposed  by  such  profound  thinkers 
as  Locke  and  such  persuasive  writers  as  Rous- 
seau, that  when  the  first  men  came  Germs  of  the 
together  to  live  in  civil  society,  they  ;JSten  con- 
made  a  sort  of  contract  with  one  an-  stitution 
other  as  to  what  laws  they  would  have,  what 
beliefs  they  would  entertain,  what  customs  they 
would  sanction,  and  so  forth.  This  theory  of 
the  Social  Contract  was  once  famous,  and  ex- 
erted a  notable  influence  on  political  history, 
and  it  is  still  interesting  in  the  same  way  that 
spinning-wheels  and  wooden  frigates  and  pow- 
dered wigs  are  interesting ;  but  we  now  know 
that  men  lived  in  civil  society,  with  complicated 
laws  and  customs  and  creeds,  for  many  thousand 
years  before  the  notion  had  ever  entered  any- 
body's head  that  things  could  be  regulated  by 
contract.  That  notion  we  owe  chiefly  ourindebt- 
to  the  ancient  Romans,  and  it  took  li'^Hi"^! 
them  several  centuries  to  compre-  "^^ns 
hend  the  idea  and  put  it  into  practice.  We  owe 
203 


WRITTEN  CONSTITUTIONS 

them  a  debt  of  gratitude  for  it.  The  custom  of 
regulating  business  and  politics  and  the  affairs 
of  life  generally  by  voluntary  but  binding  agree- 
ments is  something  without  which  we  moderns 
would  not  think  life  worth  living.  It  was  after 
the  Roman  world  —  that  is  to  say,  Christendom, 
for  in  the  Middle  Ages  the  two  terms  were 
synonymous —  had  become  thoroughly  familiar 
with  the  idea  of  contract,  that  the  practice  grew 
up  of  granting  written  charters  to  towns,  or 
monasteries,  or  other  corporate  bodies.  The 
charter  of  a  mediaeval  town  was  a  kind  of  writ- 
ten contract  by  which  the  town  obtained  certain 
specified  immunities  or  privileges  from  the 
sovereign  or  from  a  great  feudal  lord,  in  ex- 
change for  some  specified  service  which  often 
took  the  form  of  a  money  payment.  It  was 
common  enough  for  a  town  to  buy  liberty  for 
Medieval  hard  cash,  just  as  a  man  might  buy  a 
charters  farm.     The   word  charter    originally 

meant  simply  a  paper  or  written  document,  and 
It  was  often  applied  to  deeds  for  the  transfer  of 
real  estate.  In  contracts  of  such  importance 
papers  or  parchment  documents  were  drawn  up 
and  carefully  preserved  as  irrefragable  evidences 
of  the  transaction.  And  so,  in  quite  significant 
phrase  the  towns  zealously  guarded  their  charters 
as  the  "  title-deeds  of  their  liberties." 

After  a  while  the  word  charter  was  applied  in 
England  to  a  particular  document  which  speci- 
204  ' 


WRITTEN  CONSTITUTIONS 

fied  certain  important  concessions  forcibly  wrung 
by  the  people  from  a  most  unwilling  sovereign. 
This   document    was    called    Mama 

<^  The  "  Great 

Chart  ay  or  the  "  Great  Charter,  charter" 
signed  at  Runnymede,  June  15, 12 15,  '■'^'S) 
by  John,  king  of  England.  After  the  king  had 
signed  it  and  gone  away  to  his  room,  he  rolled 
in  a  mad  fury  on  the  floor,  screaming  curses, 
and  gnawing  sticks  and  straw  in  the  impotence 
of  his  wrath.^  Perhaps  it  would  be  straining 
words  to  call  a  transaction  in  which  the  consent 
was  so  one-sided  a  "  contract,"  but  the  idea  of 
Magna  Charta  was  derived  from  that  of  the 
town  charters  with  which  people  were  already 
familiar.  Thus  a  charter  came  to  mean  "  a  grant 
made  by  the  sovereign  either  to  the  whole  peo- 
ple or  to  a  portion  of  them,  securing  to  them 
the  enjoyment  of  certain  rights."  Now  in  legal 
usage  "  a  charter  differs  from  a  constitution  in 
this,  that  the  former  is  granted  by  the  sovereign, 
while  the  latter  is  established  by  the  people 
themselves :  both  are  the  fundamental  law  of 
the  land."  ^  The  distinction  is  admirably  ex- 
pressed, but  in  history  it  is  not  always  easy  to 
make  it.  Magna  Charta  was  in  form  a  grant  by 
the  sovereign,  but  it  was  really  drawn  up  by  the 
barons,  who  in  a  certain  sense  represented  the 
English  people ;  and  established  by  the  people 

^  Green,  Hist,  of  the  English  People,  vol.  i.  p.  248. 

3  Bouvier,  Law  Dictionary,  12th  ed.,  vol.  i.  p.  259. 

205 


WRITTEN  CONSTITUTIONS 

after  a  long  struggle  which  was  only  in  its  first 
stages  in  John's  time.  To  some  extent  it  par- 
took of  the  nature  of  a  written  constitution. 

Let  us  now  observe  what  happened  early  in 
1689,  after  James  II.  had  fled  from  England. 
On  January  28  Parliament  declared  the  throne 
vacant.  Parliament  then  drew  up  the  "  Declara- 
tion of  Rights,"  a  document  very  similar  in 
purport  to  the  first  eight  amendments  to  our 
Federal  Constitution,  and  on  the  13th  of  Feb- 
ruary the  two  houses  offered  the  crown  to  Wil- 
liam and  Mary  on  condition  of  their  accepting 
this  declaration  of  the  "  true,  ancient,  and  in- 
dubitable rights  of  the  people  of  this  realm." 
The  crown  having  been  accepted  on  these  terms, 
Parliament  in  the  following  December  enacted 
the  famous  "  Bill  of  Rights,"  which 

The  "  BUI  .  ,  ,      .  .       ^     1       , 

of  Rights"  Simply  put  their  previous  declaration 
('689)  j^^Q  ^^^  from  of  a  declaratory  statute. 

The  Bill  of  Rights  was  not  —  even  in  form  — 
a  grant  from  a  sovereign ;  it  was  an  instrument 
framed  by  the  representatives  of  the  people,  and 
without  promising  to  respect  it  William  and 
Mary  could  no  more  have  mounted  the  throne 
than  a  President  of  the  United  States  could  be 
inducted  into  office  if  he  were  to  refuse  to  take 
the  prescribed  oath  of  allegiance  to  the  Federal 
Constitution.  The  Bill  of  Rights  was  therefore, 
strictly  speaking,  a  piece  of  written  constitution  ; 
it  was  a  constitution  as  far  as  it  went. 
206 


WRITTEN  CONSTITUTIONS 

The  seventeenth  century,  the  age  when  the 
builders  of  American  commonwealths  were  com- 
ing from  England,  was  especially  notable  in 
England  for  two  things.  One  was  the  rapid 
growth  of  modern  commercial  occupations  and 
habits,  the  other  was  the  temporary  overthrow 
of  monarchy,  soon  followed  by  the  final  subjec- 
tion of  the  Crown  to  Parliament.  Accordingly 
the  sphere  of  contract  and  the  sphere  of  popular 
sovereignty  were  enlarged  in  men's  minds,  and 
the  notion  of  a  written  constitution  first  began 
to  find  expression.  The  "  Instrument  of  Gov- 
ernment "  which  in  1653  created  the  protectorate 
of  Oliver  Cromwell  was  substantially  a  written 
constitution,  but  it  emanated  from  a  question- 
able authority  and  was  not  ratified.  It  was 
drawn  up  by  a  council  of  army  officers  ;  and  "  it 
broke  down  because  the  first  Parliament  sum- 
moned under  it  refused  to  acknowledge  its  bind- 
ing force."  ^  The  dissolution  of  this  Parliament 
accordingly  left  Oliver  absolute  dictator.  In 
i6c6,  when  it  seemed  so  necessary  to    ^     .  ^ 

J     '  •'  Foreshadow- 

decide  what  sort  of  government  the    ingofthe 
dictatorship  of  Cromwell  was  to  pre-    ideTby"^ 
pare  the  way  for.  Sir  Harry  Vane  pro-    w^rry  vane 
posed  that  a  national  convention  snould 
be  called  for  drawing  up  a  written  constitution.^ 

1  Gardiner,  Constitutional  Documents  of  the  Puritan  Re- 
volution, p.  Ix. 

2  See  Hosmer's  Toung  Sir  Henry  Vane,  pp.  432-444,  — 

207 


WRITTEN  CONSTITUTIONS 

The  way  in  which  he  stated  his  case  showed 
that  he  had  in  him  a  prophetic  foreshadowing 
of  the  American  idea  as  it  was  realized  in  1787. 
But  Vane's  ideas  were  too  far  in  advance  of  his 
age  to  be  reahzed  then  in  England.  Older  ideas, 
to  which  men  were  more  accustomed,  deter- 
mined the  course  of  events  there,  and  it  was  left 
for  Americans  to  create  a  government  by  means 
of  a  written  constitution.  And  when  American 
statesmen  did  so,  they  did  it  without  any  refer- 
ence to  Sir  Harry  Vane.  His  relation  to  the 
subject  has  been  discovered  only  in  later  days, 
but  I  mention  him  here  in  illustration  of  the 
way  in  which  great  institutions  grow.  They  take 
shape  when  they  express  the  opinions  and  wishes 
of  a  multitude  of  persons  ;  but  it  often  happens 
that  one  or  two  men  of  remarkable  foresight 
had  thought  of  them  long  beforehand. 

In  America  the  first  attempts  at  written  con- 
stitutions were  in  the  fullest  sense  made  by  the 
people,  and  not  through  representatives,  but 
directly.  In  the  Mayflower's  cabin,  before  the 
Pilgrims  had  landed  on  Plymouth  rock,  they 
The  May-  Subscribed  their  names  to  a  compact 
flower  com-  Jn  which  they  agreed  to  constitute 
themselves  into  a  "  body  politic,"  and 
to  enact  such  laws  as  might  be  deemed   best 

one  of  the  best  books  ever  written  for  the  reader  who  wishes 

to  understand  the  state  of  mind  among  the  English  people  in 

the  crisis  when  they  laid  the  foundations  of  the  United  States. 

208 


WRITTEN  CONSTITUTIONS 

for  the  colony  they  were  about  to  estabHsh  ;  and 
they  promised  "  all  due  submission  and  obedi- 
ence "  to  such  laws.  Such  a  compact  is  of  course 
too  vague  to  be  called  a  constitution.  Properly 
speaking,  a  written  constitution  is  a  document 
which  defines  the  character  and  powers  of  the 
government  to  which  its  framers  are  willing  to 
entrust  themselves.  Almost  any  kind  of  civil 
government  might  have  been  framed  under  the 
Mayflower  compact,  but  the  document  is  none 
the  less  interesting  as  an  indication  of  the  tem- 
per of  the  men  who  subscribed  their  names  to 
it. 

The  first  written  constitution  known  to  his- 
tory was  that  by  which  the  republic  of  Connecti- 
cut was  organized  in  1639.  At  first  the  affairs 
of  the  Connecticut  settlements  had  been  directed 
by  a  commission  appointed  by  the  General 
Court  of  Massachusetts,  but  on  the  14th  of 
January,  1639,  all  the  freemen  of  the  three 
river  towns  —  Windsor,  Hartford,  and  Wethers- 
field —  assembled  at  Hartford,  and  drew  up  a 
written  constitution,  consisting  of  eleven  articles, 
in  which  the  frame  of  government  then  and 
there  adopted  was  distinctly  described,  -phe  "  Fun- 
This  document,  known  as  the  "  Fun-   damentai 

1      /^     J  r      r^  •  »>      Orders"  of 

damental    Orders    of    Connecticut,      Connecticut 
created  the  government  under  which    ^'^39) 
the  people  of  Connecticut  lived  for  nearly  two 
centuries  before   they  deemed  it  necessary  to 
209 


WRITTEN  CONSTITUTIONS 

amend  it.  The  charter  granted  to  Connecticut 
by  Charles  II.  in  1662,  was  simply  a  royal 
recognition  of  the  government  actually  in  opera- 
tion since  the  adoption  of  the  Fundamental 
Orders. 

In  those  colonies  which  had  charters  these 
documents  served,  to  a  certain  extent,  the  pur- 
poses of  a  written  constitution.  They  limited 
the  legislative  powers  of  the  colonial  assemblies, 
Germinal  The  qucstion  sometimes  came  up  as 
development     ^^  whether  somc  statute  made  by  the 

of  the  colonial  _  -' 

charter  to-  asscmbly  was  not  in  excess  of  the 
modern ^state  powers  confcrrcd  by  the  charter.  This 
constitution  question  usually  arose  in  connection 
with  some  particular  law  case,  and  thus  came 
before  the  courts  for  settlement,  —  first  before 
the  courts  of  the  colony ;  afterwards  it  might 
sometimes  be  carried  on  appeal  before  the  Privy 
Council  in  England.  If  the  court  decided  that 
the  statute  was  in  transgression  of  the  charter, 
the  statute  was  thereby  annulled.*  The  colonial 
legislature,  therefore,  was  not  a  supreme  body, 
even  within  the  colony  ;  its  authority  was  re- 
stricted by  the  terms  of  the  charter.  Thus  the 
Americans,  for  more  than  a  century  before  the 
Revolution,  were  familiarized  with  the  idea  of 
a  legislature  as  a  representative  body  acting 
within   certain  limits   prescribed   by   a   written 

^  Bryce,  American  Commonwealth,  vol.  i.  pp.  243, 
415. 

210 


WRITTEN  CONSTITUTIONS 

document.  They  had  no  knowledge  or  experi- 
ence of  a  supreme  legislative  body,  such  as  the 
House  of  Commons  has  become  since  the 
founders  of  American  states  left  England.  At 
the  time  of  the  Revolution,  when  the  several 
states  framed  new  governments,  they  simply 
put  a  written  constitution  into  the  position  of 
supremacy  formerly  occupied  by  the  charter. 
Instead  of  a  document  expressed  in  terms  of  a 
royal  grant,  they  adopted  a  document  expressed 
in  terms  of  a  popular  edict.  To  this  the  legis- 
lature must  conform  ;  and  people  were  already 
somewhat  familiar  with  the  method  of  testing 
the  constitutionality  of  a  law  by  getting  the 
matter  brought  before  the  courts.  The  mental 
habit  thus  generated  was  probably  more  impor- 
tant than  any  other  single  circumstance  in  en- 
abling our  Federal  Union  to  be  formed.  With- 
out it,  indeed,  it  would  have  been  impossible 
to  form  a  durable  union. 

Before  pursuing  this  subject,  we  may  observe 
that  American  state  constitutions  have  altered 
very  much  in  character  since  the  first    Abnormal 
part  of  the    present    century.     The    development 

,  •  .         .  -         ,  of  the  state 

earlier  constitutions  were  confined  to    constitution, 
a  general  outline  of  the  organization    ^"croaching 

°  o       _  upon  the 

of  the  government.     They  did    not   province  of 
undertake  to  make  the  laws,  but  to    ^^^^^^^^^^ 
prescribe  the  conditions  under  which  laws  might 
be  made  and  executed.     Recent  state  constitu- 

211 


WRITTEN  CONSTITUTIONS 

tions  enter  more  and  more  boldly  upon  the 
general  work  of  legislation.  For  example,  in 
some  states  they  specify  what  kinds  of  property 
shall  be  exempt  from  seizure  for  debt,  they 
make  regulations  as  to  railroad  freight-charges, 
they  prescribe  sundry  details  of  practice  in  the 
courts,  or  they  forbid  the  sale  of  intoxicating 
liquors.  Until  recently  such  subjects  would 
have  been  left  to  the  legislatures  ;  no  one  would 
have  thought  of  putting  them  into  a  constitu- 
tion. The  motive  in  so  doing  is  a  wish  to  put 
certain  laws  into  such  a  shape  that  it  will  be 
difficult  to  repeal  them.  What  a  legislature  sees 
fit  to  enact  this  year  it  may  see  fit  to  repeal 
next  year.  But  amending  a  state  constitution  is 
a  slow  and  cumbrous  process.  An  amendment 
may  be  originated  in  the  legislature,  where  it 
must  secure  more  than  a  mere  majority  —  per- 
haps a  three  fifths  or  two  thirds  vote  —  in  order 
to  pass  ;  in  some  states  it  must  be  adopted  by 
two  successive  legislatures,  perhaps  by  two  thirds 
of  one  and  three  fourths  of  the  next ;  in  some 
states  not  more  than  one  amendment  can  be 
brought  before  the  same  legislature  ;  in  some  it 
is  provided  that  amendments  must  not  be  sub- 
mitted to  the  people  oftener  than  once  in  five 
years  ;  and  so  on.  After  the  amendment  has 
at  length  made  its  way  through  the  legislature, 
it  must  be  ratified  by  a  vote  of  the  people  at 
the  next  general  election.    Another  way  to  get 

212 


WRITTEN  CONSTITUTIONS 

a  constitution  amended  is  to  call  a  convention 
for  that  purpose.  In  order  to  call  a  convention, 
it  is  usually  necessary  to  obtain  a  two  thirds  vote 
in  the  legislature ;  but  in  some  states  "  the 
legislature  is  required  at  stated  intervals  to  sub- 
mit to  the  people  the  question  of  holding  such 
a  convention,  as  in  New  Hampshire  every  seven 
years;  in  Iowa,  every  ten  years;  in  Michigan 
every  sixteen  years  ;  in  New  York,  Ohio,  Mary- 
land, and  Virginia,  every  twenty  years." ^  A  con- 
vention is  a  representative  body  elected  by  the 
people  to  meet  at  some  specified  time  and  place 
for  some  specified  purpose,  and  its  existence 
ends  with  the  accomplishment  of  that  purpose. 
It  is  in  this  occasional  character  that  the  con- 
vention differs  from  an  ordinary  legislative 
assembly. 

With  such  elaborate  checks  against  hasty 
action,  it  is  to  be  presumed  that  if  a  law  can  be 
once  embodied  in  a  state  constitution,  it  will 
be  likely  to  have  some  permanence.  Moreover, 
a  direct  vote  by  the  people  gives  a  weightier 
sanction  to  a  law  than  a  vote  in  the  legislature. 
There  is  also,  no  doubt,  a  disposition  to  dis- 
trust legislatures  and  in  some  measure  do  their 
work  for  them  by  direct  popular  enactment. 
For  such  reasons  some  recent  state  constitutions 
have  come  almost  to  resemble  bodies  of  statutes. 

*  See  Henry  Hitchcock's  admirable  monograph,  American 
State  Constitutions,  p.  19. 

213 


WRITTEN  CONSTITUTIONS 

Mr.  Woodrow  Wilson  suggestively  compares 

this  kind  of  popular  legislation  with  the  Swiss 

practice    known  as  the  Referendum ; 

The  Swiss  r  r     1        o     •  • 

««Referen-      in  most  ot  thc  bwiss  cantons  an  im- 
'^""^  portant  act    of  the  legislature    does 

not  acquire  the  force  of  law  until  it  has  been 
referred  to  the  people  and  voted  on  by  them. 
"The  objections  to  the  referendum^'  says  Mr. 
Wilson,  "  are,  of  course,  that  it  assumes  a  dis- 
criminating judgment  and  a  fulness  of  informa- 
tion on  the  part  of  the  people  touching  ques- 
tions of  public  policy  which  they  do  not  often 
possess,  and  that  it  lowers  the  sense  of  respon- 
sibility on  the  part  of  legislators."  ^  Another 
serious  objection  to  our  recent  practice  is  that 
it  tends  to  confuse  the  very  valuable  distinction 
between  a  constitution  and  a  body  of  statutes, 
to  necessitate  a  frequent  revision  of  constitu- 
tions, and  to  increase  the  cumbrousness  of  law- 
making. It  would,  however,  be  premature  at 
the  present  time  to  pronounce  confidently  upon 
a  practice  of  such  recent  origin.  It  is  clear  that 
its  tendency  is  extremely  democratic,  and  that 
it  implies  a  high  standard  of  general  intelligence 
and  independence  among  the  people.  If  the 
evils  of  the  practice  are  found  to  outweigh  its 
benefits,  it  will  doubtless  fall  into  disfavour. 
^  Wilson,  The  State,  p.  490. 


214 


VIII 
THE    FEDERAL   UNION 

§  I.  Origin  of  the  Federal  Union. 

HAVING  now  sketched  the  origin  and 
nature  of  written  constitutions,  we  are 
prepared  to  understand  how  by  means 
of  such  a  document  the  government  of  our 
Federal  Union  was  called  into  existence.  We 
have  already  described  so  much  of  the  civil 
government  in  operation  in  the  United  States 
that  this  account  can  be  made  much  more  con- 
cise than  if  we  had  started  at  the  top  instead  of 
the  bottom  and  begun  to  portray  our  national 
government  before  saying  a  word  about  states 
and  counties  and  towns.  Bit  by  bit  the  general 
theory  of  American  self-government  has  already 
been  set  before  the  reader.  We  have  now  to 
observe,  in  conclusion,  what  a  magnificent  piece 
of  constructive  work  has  been  performed  in  ac- 
cordance with  that  general  theory.  We  have  to 
observe  the  building  up  of  a  vast  empire  out 
of  strictly  self-governing  elements. 

There  was    always    one    important    circum- 
stance in  favour  of  the  union  of  the  thirteen 

.  215 


THE  FEDERAL  UNION 

American  colonies  into  a  federal  nation.    The 

inhabitants  were  all   substantially  one   people. 

It  is  true  that  in  some  of  the  colonies 

English  insti- 

tudons  in  aU  there  Were  a  good  many  persons  not 
the  colonies  ^^  English  ancestry,  but  the  English 
type  absorbed  and  assimilated  everything  else. 
All  spoke  the  English  language,  all  had  Eng- 
lish institutions.  Except  the  development  of 
the  written  constitution,  every  bit  of  civil  gov- 
ernment described  in  the  preceding  pages  came 
to  America  directly  from  England,  and  not  a  bit 
of  it  from  any  other  country,  unless  by  being 
first  filtered  through  England.  Our  institutions 
were  as  English  as  our  speech.  It  was  therefore 
comparatively  easy  for  people  in  one  colony  to 
understand  people  in  another,  not  only  as  to 
their  words  but  as  to  their  political  ideas. 
Moreover,  during  the  first  half  of  the  eighteenth 
century,  the  common  danger  from  the  aggres- 
sive French  enemy  on  the  north  and  west  went 
far  toward  awakening  in  the  thirteen  colonies  a 
common  interest.  And  after  the  French  enemy 
had  been  removed,  the  assertion  by  Parliament 
of  its  alleged  right  to  tax  the  Americans  threat- 
ened all  the  thirteen  legislatures  at  once,  and 
thus  in  fact  drove  the  colonies  into  a  kind  of 
federal  union. 

Confederations  among  states  have  generally 
owed  their  origin,  in  the  first  instance,  to  mili- 
tary necessities.   The  earliest  league  in  America, 

2l6 


ORIGIN  OF  THE  FEDERAL  UNION 

among  white  people  at  least,  was  the  confeder- 
acy of  New  England  colonies  formed  in  1643, 
chiefly  for  defence  against  the  Indians.  The  New 
It  was  finally  dissolved  amid  the  fedLacv ""' 
troubles  of  1684,  when  the  first  gov-  (1643-84) 
ernment  of  Massachusetts  was  overthrown. 
Along  the  Atlantic  coast  the  northern  and  the 
southern  colonies  were  for  some  time  distinct 
groups,  separated  by  the  unsettled  portion  of 
the  central  zone.  The  settlement  of  Pennsyl- 
vania, beginning  in  1681,  filled  this  gap  and 
made  the  colonies  continuous  from  the  French 
frontier  of  Canada  to  the  Spanish  frontier  of 
Florida.  The  danger  from  France  began  to  be 
clearly  apprehended  after  1689,  and  in  1698 
one  of  the  earliest  plans  of  union  was  proposed 
by  William  Penn.  In  1754,  just  as  the  final 
struggle  with  France  was  about  to  begin,  there 
came  Franklin's  famous  plan  for  a  permanent 
federal  union  ;  and  this  plan  was  laid  before  a 
congress  assembled  at  Albany  for  re-  Albany  Con- 
newing  the  alliances  with  the  Six  g^^(^7S4) 
Nations.-'  Only  seven  colonies  were  represented 
in  this  congress.  Observe  the  word  "  con- 
gress." If  it  had  been  a  legislative  body  it 
would  more  likely  have   been  called  a  "  parlia- 

^  Franklin's  plan  was  afterward  submitted  to  the  several 
legislattires  of  the  colonies,  and  was  ever)'where  rejected  be- 
cause the  need  for  union  was  nowhere  strongly  felt  by  the 
people. 

217 


THE  FEDERAL  UNION 

ment."  But  of  course  it  was  nothing  of  the 
sort.  It  was  a  diplomatic  body,  composed  of 
delegates  representing  state  governments,  like 
European  congresses,  —  like  the  Congress  of 
Berlin,  for  example,  which  tried  to  adjust  the 
Eastern   Question   in    1878.    Eleven 

Stamp  Act  r  i         a  11  r^ 

Congress  ycars  arter  the  Albany  Congress,  upon 
^'''^^^  the  news  that  Parliament   had  passed 

the  Stamp  Act,  a  congress  of  nine  colonies  as- 
sembled at  New  York  in  October,  1765,  to 
take  action  thereon. 

Nine  years  elapsed  without  another  congress. 
Meanwhile  the  political  excitement,  with  occa- 
sional lulls,  went  on  increasing,  and  some  sort 
of  cooperation  between  the  colonial  govern- 
ments became  habitual.  In  1768,  after  Parlia- 
ment had  passed  the  Townshend  revenue  acts, 
there  was  no  congress,  but  Massachusetts  sent  a 
circular  letter  to  the  other  colonies,  inviting  them 
Committees  to  coopcratc  in  mcasurcs  of  resistance, 
spondMce  ^'^^  ^^  other  colonies  responded  fa- 
(1772-75)  vourably.  In  1772,  as  we  have  seen, 
committees  of  correspondence  between  the  towns 
of  Massachusetts  acted  as  a  sort  of  provisional 
government  for  the  commonwealth.  In  1773 
Dabney  Carr,  of  Virginia,  enlarged  upon  this 
idea,  and  committees  of  correspondence  were 
forthwith  instituted  between  the  several  colonies. 
Thus  the  habit  of  acting  in  concert  began  to  be 
formed.  In  1774,  after  Parliament  had  passed 
218 


ORIGIN  OF  THE  FEDERAL  UNION 

an  act  overthrowing  the  government  of  Massa- 
chusetts, along  with  other  offensive  measures,  a 
congress  assembled  in  September  at  Philadel- 
phia, the  city  most  centrally  situated  as  well  as 
the  largest.     If  the  remonstrances  adopted  at 
this  congress  had  been  heeded  by  the    continental 
British  government,  and   peace   had    congress 
followed,  this  congress  would  proba- 
bly have  been  as  temporary  an  affair  as  its  pre- 
decessors ;  people  would  probably  have  waited 
until  overtaken  by  some  other  emergency.    But 
inasmuch  as  war  followed,  the  congress  assem- 
bled again  in  May,  1775,  and  thereafter  became 
practically  a  permanent  institution  until  it  died 
of  old  age  with  the  year  1788. 

This  congress  was  called  "  continental "  to 
distinguish  it  from  the  "  provincial  congresses  " 
held  in  several  of  the  colonies  at  about  the  same 
time.  The  thirteen  colonies  were  indeed  but  a 
narrow  strip  on  the  edge  of  a  vast  and  in  large 
part  unexplored  continent,  but  the  word  "  con- 
tinental "  was  convenient  for  distinguishing  be- 
tween the  whole  confederacy  and  its  several 
members. 

The  Continental  Congress  began  to  exercise  a 
certain  amount  of  directive  authority  from  the 
time  of  its  first  meeting  in  1774.  Such  author- 
ity as  it  had  arose  simply  from  the  fact  that  it 
represented  an  agreement  on  the  part  of  the 
several  governments  to  pursue  a  certain  line 
219 


THE  FEDERAL  UNION 

of  policy.  It  was  a  diplomatic  and  executive, 
but  scarcely  yet  a  legislative  body.  Neverthe- 
The  several  ^^^s  it  was  the  Visible  symbol  of  a  kind 
states  were      of  union  betwccn  the  states.     There 

never  at  any  .  ,  - 

time  sover-  ncvcr  was  a  time  when  any  one  or 
eign  states  ^.j^^  original  statcs  exercised  singly 
the  full  powers  of  sovereignty.  Not  one  of 
them  was  ever  a  small  sovereign  state  like  Den- 
mark or  Portugal.  As  they  acted  together  un- 
der the  common  direction  of  the  British  gov- 
ernment in  1759,  the  year  of  Quebec,  so  they 
acted  together  under  the  common  direction  of 
that  revolutionary  body,  the  Continental  Con- 
gress, in  1775,  the  year  of  Bunker  Hill.  In 
that  year  a  "  continental  army  "  was  organized 
in  the  name  of  the  "  United  Colonies."  In  the 
following  year,  when  independence  was  declared, 
it  was  done  by  the  concerted  action  of  all  the 
colonies  ;  and  at  the  same  time  a  committee 
was  appointed  by  Congress  to  draw  up  a  written 
constitution.  This  constitution,  known  as  the 
The  Articles  "  Articlcs  of  Confederation,"  was  sub- 
ofconfedera-    mittcd  to  Congrcss  in  the  autumn  of 

tion  ,  '-'  ,  , 

1777,  and  was  sent  to  the  several 
states  to  be  ratified.  A  unanimous  ratification 
was  necessary,  and  it  was  not  until  March, 
178 1,  that  unanimity  was  secured  and  the  arti- 
cles adopted. 

Meanwhile  the  Revolutionary  War  had  ad- 
vanced into  its  last  stages,  having  been  carried 
220 


ORIGIN  OF  THE  FEDERAL  UNION 

on  from  the  outset  under  the  general  direction 
of  the  Continental  Congress.  When  reading 
about  this  period  of  our  history,  the  student 
must  be  careful  not  to  be  misled  by  the  name 
"  congress  "  into  reasoning  as  if  there  were  any 
resemblance  whatever  between  that  body  and 
the  congress  which  was  created  by  our  Federal 
Constitution.  The  Continental  Congress  was 
not  the  parent  of  our  Federal  Congress ;  the 
former  died  without  offspring,  and  the  latter 
had  a  very  different  origin,  as  we  shall  soon 
see.  The  former  simply  bequeathed  to  the  lat- 
ter a  name,  that  was  all. 

The  Continental  Congress  was  an  assembly 
of  delegates  from  the  thirteen  states,  which  from 
1774  to  1783  held  its  sessions  at  Philadelphia.^ 
It  owned  no  federal  property,  not  Nature  and 
even  the  house  in  which  it  assembled,  condnentd^ 
and  after  it  had  been  turned  out  of  Congress 
doors  by  a  mob  of  drunken  soldiers  in  June, 
1783,  it  flitted  about  from  place  to  place,  sitting 
now  at  Trenton,  now  at  Annapolis,  and  finally 
at  New  York.^  Each  state  sent  to  it  as  many 
delegates  as  it  chose,  though  after  the  adoption 

^  Except  for  a  few  days  in  December,  1776,  when  it  fled 
to  Baltimore;  and  again  from  September,  1777,  to  June, 
1778,  when  Philadelphia  was  in  possession  of  the  British  ; 
during  that  interval  Congress  held  its  meetings  at  York  in 
Pennsylvania. 

"  See  my  Critical  Period  of  American  History,  chaps,  iii., 
vi.,  vii. 

221 


THE  FEDERAL  UNION 

of  the  articles  no  state  could  send  less  than  two 
or  more  than  seven.  Each  state  had  one  vote, 
and  it  took  nine  votes,  or  two  thirds  of  the 
whole,  to  carry  any  measure  of  importance. 
One  of  the  delegates  was  chosen  president  or 
chairman  of  the  congress,  and  this  position  was 
one  of  great  dignity  and  considerable  influence, 
but  it  was  not  essentially  different  from  the  posi- 
tion of  any  of  the  other  delegates.  There  were 
no  distinct  executive  officers.  Important  execu- 
tive matters  were  at  first  assigned  to  committees, 
such  as  the  Finance  Committee  and  the  Board 
of  War,  though  at  the  most  trying  time  the 
finance  committee  was  a  committee  of  one,  in 
the  person  of  Robert  Morris,  who  was  com- 
monly called  the  Financier.  The  work  of  the 
finance  committee  was  chiefly  trying  to  solve 
the  problem  of  paying  bills  without  spend- 
ing money,  for  there  was  seldom  any  money 
to  spend.  Congress  could  not  tax  the  people 
or  recruit  the  army.  When  it  wanted  money  or 
troops,  it  could  only  ask  the  state  governments 
for  them  ;  and  generally  it  got  from  a  fifth  to  a 
fourth  part  of  the  troops  needed,  but  of  money 
a  far  smaller  proportion.  Sometimes  it  borrowed 
money  from  Holland  or  France,  but  often  its 
only  resource  was  to  issue  paper  promises  to 
pay,  or  the  so-called  Continental  paper  money. 
There  were  no  federal  courts,^  nor  marshals  to 
*  Except  the  '*  Court  of  Appeals  in  Cases  of  Capture," 
222 


ORIGIN  OF  THE  FEDERAL  UNION 

execute  federal  decrees.  Congress  might  issue 
orders,  but  it  had  no  means  of  compelling 
obedience. 

The  Continental  Congress  was  therefore  not 
in  the  full  sense  a  sovereign  body.  A  govern- 
ment is  not  really  a  government  until  it  can 
impose  taxes  and  thus  command  the  money 
needful  for  keeping  it  in  existence,  it  was  not 
Nevertheless  the  Congress  exercised  do^^ed  with 
some  of  the  most  indisputable  func-  sovereignty 
tions  of  sovereignty.  "  It  declared  the  inde- 
pendence of  the  United  States ;  it  contracted 
an  offensive  and  defensive  alliance  with  France  ; 
it  raised  and  organized  a  Continental  army  ;  it 
borrowed  large  sums  of  money,  and  pledged 
what  the  lenders  understood  to  be  the  national 
credit  for  their  repayment ;  it  issued  an  in- 
convertible paper  currency,  granted  letters  of 
marque,  and  built  a  navy."  ^  Finally  it  ratified 
a  treaty  of  peace  with  Great  Britain.  So  that 
the  Congress  was  really,  in  many  respects,  and 
in  the  eyes  of  the  world  at  large,  a  sovereign 
body.  Time  soon  showed  that  the  continued 
exercise  of  such  powers  was  not  compatible  with 
the  absence  of  the  power  to  tax  the  people.  In 
truth  the  situation  of  the  Continental  Congress 
was   an   illogical   situation.      In   the   effort   of 

for  an  admirable  account  of  which  see  Jameson's  Essays  in 
the  Constitutional  History  of  the  United  States,  pp.  1—45. 
*   Critical  Period,  chap.  iii. 

112 


THE  FEDERAL  UNION 

throwing  off  the  sovereignty  of  Great  Britain, 
the  people  of  these  states  were  constructing  a 
federal  union  faster  than  they  realized.  Their 
theory  of  the  situation  did  not  keep  pace  with 
the  facts,  and  their  first  attempt  to  embody 
their  theory,  in  the  Articles  of  Confederation, 
was  not  unnaturally  a  failure. 

At  first  the  powers  of  the  Congress  were 
vague.  They  were  what  are  called  "  implied 
war  powers  ; "  that  is  to  say,  the  Congress  had 
a  war  with  Great  Britain  on  its  hands,  and  must 
be  supposed  to  have  power  to  do  whatever  was 
necessary  to  bring  the  war  to  a  successful  con- 
clusion. At  first,  too,  when  it  had  only  begun 
to  issue  paper  money,  there  was  a  momentary 
feeling  of  prosperity.  Military  success  added 
to  its  appearance  of  strength,  and  the  reputa- 
tion of  the  Congress  reached  its  highwater  mark 
early  in  1778,  after  the  capture  of  Burgoyne's 
army  and  the  making  of  the  alliance  with 
France.  After  that  time,  with  the  weary  pro- 
longing of  the  war,  the  increase  of  the  public 
Decline  of  debt,  and  the  collapse  of  the  paper 
Snui°Con-  currency,  its  reputation  steadily  de- 
gress clined.  There  was  also  much  work 
to  be  done  in  reorganizing  the  state  govern- 
ments, and  this  kept  at  home  in  the  state  legis- 
latures many  of  the  ablest  men  who  would 
otherwise  have  been  sent  to  the  Congress.  Thus 
in  point  of  intellectual  capacity  the  latter  body 
224 


ORIGIN  OF  THE  FEDERAL  UNION 

was  distinctly  inferior  in  1783  to  what  it  had 
been  when  first  assembled  nine  years  earlier. 

The  arrival  of  peace  did  not  help  the  Con- 
gress, but  made  matters  worse.  When  the  ab- 
solute necessity  of  presenting  a  united  front  to 
the  common  enemy  was  removed,  the  weakness 
of  the  union  was  shown  in  many  ways  that  were 
alarming.  The  sentiment  of  union  was  weak. 
In  spite  of  the  community  in  language  and  in- 
stitutions, which  was  so  favourable  to  union, 
the  people  of  the  several  states  had  many  local 
prejudices  which  tended  to  destroy  the  union 
in  its  infancy.  A  man  was  quicker  to  remember 
that  he  was  a  New  Yorker  or  a  Massachusetts 
man  than  that  he  was  an  American  and  a  citizen 
of  the  United  States.  Neighbouring  states  levied 
custom-house  duties  against  one  another,  or  re- 
fused to  admit  into  their  markets  each  Anarchical 
other's  produce,  or  had  quarrels  about  tendencies 
boundaries  which  went  to  the  verge  of  war. 
Things  grew  worse  every  year,  until  by  the  au- 
tumn of  1786,  when  the  Congress  was  quite 
bankrupt  and  most  of  the  states  nearly  so,  when 
threats  of  secession  were  heard  both  in  New 
England  and  in  the  South,  when  there  were 
riots  in  several  states  and  Massachusetts  was 
engaged  in  suppressing  armed  rebellion,  when 
people  in  Europe  were  beginning  to  ask  whether 
we  were  more  likely  to  be  seized  upon  by  France 
or  reconquered  piecemeal  by  Great  Britain,  it 
225 


THE  FEDERAL  UNION 

came  to  be  thought  necessary  to  make  some  kind 
of  a  change. 

Men  were  most  unwillingly  brought  to  this 
conclusion,  because  they  were  used  to  their  state 
assemblies  and  not  afraid  of  them,  but  they 
were  afraid  of  increasing  the  powers  of  any  gov- 
ernment superior  to  the  states,  lest  they  should 
thus  create  an  unmanageable  tyranny.  They 
believed  that  even  anarchy,  though  a  dreadful 
evil,  is  not  so  dreadful  as  despotism,  and  for 
this  view  there  is  much  to  be  said.  After  no 
end  of  trouble  a  convention  was  at  length  got 
together  at  Philadelphia  in  May,  1787,  and 
after  four  months  of  work  with  closed  doors, 
rr^u  r-  J    ,     it  was  able  to  offer  to  the  country  the 

The  Federal  _         _  •;      _ 

Convention  ncw  Federal  Constitution.  Both  in  its 
^'^  ^^  character  and   in  the  work  which  it 

did,  this  Federal  Convention,  over  which  Wash- 
ington presided,  and  of  which  Franklin,  Madi- 
son, and  Hamilton  were  members,  was  one  of 
the  most  remarkable  deliberative  bodies  known 
to  history. 

We  have  seen  that  the  fundamental  weakness 
of  the  Continental  Congress  lay  in  the  fact  that 
it  could  not  tax  the  people.  Hence  although  it 
could  for  a  time  exert  other  high  functions  of 
sovereignty,  it  could  only  do  so  while  money 
was  supplied  to  it  from  other  sources  than  tax- 
ation ;  from  contributions  made  by  the  states 
in  answer  to  its  "  requisitions,"  from  foreign 
226 


ORIGIN  OF  THE  FEDERAL  UNION 

loans,  and  from  a  paper  currency.  But  such  re- 
sources could  not  last  long.  It  was  like  a  man's 
trying  to  live  upon  his  own  promissory  notes 
and  upon  gifts  and  unsecured  loans  from  his 
friends.  When  the  supply  of  money  was  ex- 
hausted, the  Congress  soon  found  that  it  could 
no  longer  comport  itself  as  a  sovereign  power ; 
it  could  not  preserve  order  at  home,  and  the 
situation  abroad  may  be  illustrated  by  the  fact 
that  George  III.  kept  garrisons  in  several  of 
our  northwestern  frontier  towns  and  would  not 
send  a  minister  to  the  United  States.  This  ex- 
ample shows  that,  among  the  sovereign  powers 
of  a  government,  the  power  of  taxation  is  the 
fundamental  one  upon  which  all  the  others  de- 
pend.   Nothing  can  go  on  without  money. 

But  the  people  of  the  several  states  would 
never  consent  to  grant  the  power  of  taxation 
to  such  a  body  as  the  Continental  Congress,  in 
which  they  were  not  represented.  The  Con- 
gress was  not  a  legislature,  but  a  diplomatic 
body ;  it  did  not  represent  the  people,  but  the 
state  governments  ;  and  a  large  state  like  Penn- 
sylvania had  no  more  weight  in  it  than  a  little 
state  like  Delaware.  If  there  was  to  be  any 
central  assembly  for  the  whole  union,  endowed 
with  the  power  of  taxation,  it  must  be  an  as- 
sembly representing  the  American  people  just 
as  the  assembly  of  a  single  state  represented  the 
people  of  the  state. 

227 


THE  FEDERAL  UNION 

As  soon  as  this  point  became  clear,  it  was 
seen  to  be  necessary  to  throw  the  Articles  of 
Confederation  overboard,  and  construct  a  new 
national  government.  As  was  said  above,  our 
Federal  Congress  is  not  descended  from  the 
Continental  Congress.  Its  parentage  is  to  be 
sought  in  the  state  legislatures.  Our  federal 
government  was  constructed  after  the  general 
model  of  the  state  governments,  with  some 
points  copied  from  British  usages,  and  some 
points  that  were  original  and  new. 

§  1.    The  Federal  Congress. 

The  Federal  House  of  Representatives  is  de- 
scended, through  the  state  houses  of  representa- 
tives, from  the    colonial  assemblies.     It  is  an 
assembly  representing  the  whole  population  of 
the  country  as  if  it  were  all  in  one 

The  House  ^  , 

ofRepresen-    great  State.    It  IS  composed  or  mem- 
**"^"  bers  chosen  every  other  year  by  the 

people  of  the  states.  Persons  in  any  state  who 
are  qualified  to  vote  for  state  representatives 
are  qualified  to  vote  for  federal  representatives. 
This  arrangement  left  the  power  of  regulating  the 
suffrage  in  the  hands  of  the  several  states,  where 
it  still  remains,  save  for  the  restriction  imposed 
in  1870  for  the  protection  of  the  southern  freed- 
men.  A  candidate  for  election  to  the  House  of 
Representatives  must  be  twenty-five  years  old, 
228 


THE  FEDERAL  CONGRESS 

must  have  been  seven  years  a  citizen  of  the 
United  States,  and  must  be  an  inhabitant  of  the 
state  in  which  he  is  chosen. 

As  the  Federal  Congress  is  a  taxing  body, 
representatives  and  direct  taxes  are  apportioned 
among  the  several  states  according  to  the  same 
rule,  that  is,  according  to  population.  At  this 
point  a  difficulty  arose  in  the  Convention  as  to 
whether  slaves  should  be  counted  as  popula- 
tion. If  they  were  to  be  counted,  the  relative 
weight  of  the  slave  states  in  all  matters  of 
national  legislation  would  be  much  increased. 
The  northern  states  thought,  with  reason,  that 
it  would  be  unduly  increased.  The  difficulty 
was  adjusted  by  a  compromise  accord- 
ing  to  which  five  slaves  were  to  be  fifths  com- 
reckoned  as  three  persons.  Since  the  p''"™^^ 
abolition  of  slavery  this  provision  has  become 
obsolete,  but  until  i860  it  was  a  very  important 
factor  in  American  history.-^ 

In  the  Federal  House  of  Representatives  the 
great  states  of  course  have  much  more  weight 
than  the  small  states.  In  1790  the  four  largest 
states  had  thirty-two  representatives,  while  the 
other  nine  had  only  thirty-three.  The  largest 
state,  Virginia,  had  ten  representatives  to  one 
from  Delaware.  These  disparities  have  in- 
creased. In  1880,  out  of  thirty-eight  states  the 
nine  largest  had  a  majority  of  the  house,  and 
^  See  my  Critical  Period ^  chap.  vi. 
229 


THE  FEDERAL  UNION 

the  largest   state.  New   York,   had  thirty-four 
representatives  to  one  from  Delaware. 

This  feature  of  the  House  of  Representatives 
caused  the  smaller  states  in  the  Convention  to 
oppose  the  whole  scheme  of  constructing  a  new 
government.  They  were  determined  that  great 
and  small  states  should  have  equal  weight  in 
Congress.  Their  steadfast  opposition  threat- 
ened to  ruin  everything,  when  fortunately  a 
method  of  compromise  was  discovered.  It  was 
intended  that  the  national  legislature,  in  imita- 
tion of  the  state  legislatures,  should  have  an 
tipper  house  or  Senate ;  and  at  first  the  advo- 
cates of  a  strong  national  government  proposed 
„,    _  that  the  Senate  also  should  represent 

The  Con-  i-rr     •  r 

necticut  population,  thus  difrermg  from  the 
compromise  loy^^gj.  housc  Only  in  the  way  in  which 
we  have  seen  that  it  generally  differed  in  the 
several  states.  But  it  happened  that  in  the  state 
of  Connecticut  the  custom  was  peculiar.  There 
it  had  always  been  the  custom  to  elect  the  gov- 
ernor and  upper  house  by  a  majority  vote  of 
the  whole  people,  while  for  each  township  there 
was  an  equality  of  representation  in  the  lower 
house.  The  Connecticut  delegates  in  the  Con- 
vention, therefore,  being  familiar  with  a  legisla- 
ture in  which  the  two  houses  were  composed  on 
different  principles,  suggested  a  compromise. 
Let  the  House  of  Representatives,  they  said, 
represent  the  people,  and  let  the  Senate  repre- 
230 


THE  FEDERAL  CONGRESS 

sent  the  states  ;  let  all  the  states,  great  and 
small,  be  represented  equally  in  the  Federal 
Senate.  Such  was  the  famous  "  Connecticut 
Compromise."  Without  it  the  Convention 
would  probably  have  broken  up  without  ac- 
complishing anything.  When  it  was  adopted, 
half  the  work  of  making  the  new  government 
was  done,  for  the  small  states,  having  had  their 
fears  thus  allayed  by  the  assurance  that  they 
were  to  be  equally  represented  in  the  Senate,  no 
longer  opposed  the  work,  but  cooperated  in  it 
most  zealously. 

Thus  it  came  to  pass  that  the  upper  house 
of  our  national  legislature  is  composed  of  two 
senators  from  each  state.  As  they  represent  the 
state,  they  are  chosen  by  its  legislature  and  not 
by  the  people ;  but  when  they  have 
taken  their  seats  in  the  Senate  they 
do  not  vote  by  states,  like  the  delegates  in  the 
Continental  Congress.  On  the  contrary  each 
senator  has  one  vote,  and  the  two  senators  from 
the  same  state  may,  and  often  do,  vote  on  op- 
posite sides. 

In  accordance  with  the  notion  that  an  upper 
house  should  be  somewhat  less  democratic 
than  a  lower  house,  the  term  of  office  for  sena- 
tors was  made  longer  than  for  representatives. 
The  tendency  is  to  make  the  Senate  respond 
more  slowly  to  changes  in  popular  sentiment, 
and  this  is  often  an  advantage.  Popular  opinion 
231 


THE  FEDERAL  UNION 

is  often  very  wrong  at  particular  moments,  but 
with  time  it  is  apt  to  correct  its  mistakes.  We 
are  usually  in  more  danger  of  suffering  from 
hasty  legislation  than  from  tardy  legislation. 
Senators  are  chosen  for  a  term  of  six  years,  and 
one  third  of  the  number  of  terms  expire  every 
second  year,  so  that,  while  the  whole  Senate 
may  be  renewed  by  the  lapse  of  six  years,  there 
is  never  a  "  new  Senate."  The  Senate  has  thus 
a  continuous  existence  and  a  permanent  organi- 
zation; whereas  each  House  of  Representatives 
expires  at  the  end  of  its  two  years'  term,  and  is 
succeeded  by  a  "  new  House,"  which  requires 
to  be  organized  by  electing  its  officers,  etc.,  be- 
fore proceeding  to  business.  A  candidate  for 
the  senatorship  must  have  reached  the  age  of 
thirty,  must  have  been  nine  years  a  citizen  of 
the  United  States,  and  must  be  an  inhabitant 
of  the  state  which  he  represents. 

The  constitution  leaves  the  times,  places,  and 
manner  of  holding  elections  for  senators  and 
representatives  to  be  prescribed  in  each  state 
by  its  own  legislature ;  but  it  gives  to  Congress 
the  power  to  alter  such  regulations,  except  as  to 
the  place  of  choosing  senators.  Here  we  see  a 
vestige  of  the  original  theory  according  to  which 
the  Senate  was  to  be  peculiarly  the  home  of 
state  rights. 

In  the  composition  of  the  House  of  Repre- 
sentatives the  state  legislatures  play  a  very  im- 
232 


THE  FEDERAL  CONGRESS 

portant  part.  For  the  purposes  of  the  election 
a  state  is  divided  into  districts  corresponding  to 
the  number  of  representatives  the  state  is  en- 
titled to  send  to  Congress.  These  electoral  dis- 
tricts are  marked  out  by  the  legisla-  Electoral 
ture,  and  the  division  Is  apt  to  be  districts 
made  by  the  preponderating  party  with  an  un- 
fairness that  is  at  once  shameful  and  ridiculous. 
The  aim,  of  course,  is  so  to  lay  out  the  dis- 
tricts "as  to  secure  in  the  greatest  possible 
number  of  thera  a  majority  for  the  party  which 
conducts  the  operation.  This  is  done  some- 
times by  throwing  the  greatest  possible  number 
of  hostile  voters  into  a  district  which  is  anyhow 
certain  to  be  hostile,  sometimes  by  adding  to  a 
district  where  parties  are  equally  divided  some 
place  in  which  the  majority  of  friendly  voters  is 
sufficient  to  turn  the  scale.  There  Is  a  district 
in  Mississippi  (the  so-called  Shoe  String  dis- 
trict) 250  miles  long  by  30  broad,  and  another 
in  Pennsylvania  resembling  a  dumb-bell.  .  .  . 
In  Missouri  a  district  has  been  contrived  longer, 
if  measured  along  its  windings,  than  the  state 
itself,  into  which  as  large  a  number  as  possible 
of  the  negro  voters  have  been  thrown."  ^  This 
trick  is  called  "gerrymandering,"  from  Elbrldge 
Gerry,  of  Massachusetts,  who  was  «<Gerryman- 
vice-president  of  the  United  States  Bering" 
from  iSijtoiSiy.  It  seems  to  have  been  first 
^  Bryce,  American  Commonwealth,  vol.  i.  p.  i  z  i . 


THE  FEDERAL  UNION 

devised  in  1788  by  the  enemies  of  the  Federal 
Constitution  in  Virginia,  in  order  to  prevent 
the  election  of  James  Madison  to  the  first  Con- 
gress, and  fortunately  it  was  unsuccessful.^  It 
was  introduced  some  years  afterward  into  Mas- 


sachusetts. In  1 812,  while  Gerry  was  governor 
of  that  state,  the  Republican  legislature  redis- 
tributed the  districts  in  such  wise  that  the 
shapes  of  the  towns  forming  a  single  district  in 
Essex  County  gave  to  the  district  a  somewhat 
^  Tyler's  Patrick  Henry,  p.  313. 


THE  FEDERAL  CONGRESS 

dragon-like  contour.  This  was  indicated  upon 
a  map  of  Massachusetts  which  Benjamin  Rus- 
sell, an  ardent  Federalist  and  editor  of  the 
"  Centinel,"  hung  up  over  the  desk  in  his  office. 
The  celebrated  painter,  Gilbert  Stuart,  coming 
into  the  office  one  day  and  observing  the  un- 
couth figure,  added  with  his  pencil  a  head, 
wings,  and  claws,  and  exclaimed,  "  That  will  do 
for  a  salamander  !  "  "  Better  say  a  Gerryman- 
der !  "  growled  the  editor;  and  the  outlandish 
name,  thus  duly  coined,  soon  came  into  gen- 
eral currency.^ 

When  after  an  increase  in  its  number  of  re- 
presentatives the  state  has  failed  to  redistribute 
its  districts,  the  additional  member  or  members 
are  voted  for  upon  a  general  state  ticket,  and 
are  called  "  representatives  at  large."  In  Maine, 
where  the  census  of  1880  had  reduced  the  num- 
ber of  representatives  and  there  was  some  delay 
in  the  redistribution.  Congress  allowed  the  state 
in  1882  to  elect  all  its  representatives  upon  a 
general  ticket.  The  advantage  of  the  district 
system  is  that  the  candidates  are  likely  The  election 
to  be  better  known  by  their  neigh-  ^^•*''g« 
hours,  but  the  election  at  large  is  perhaps  more 

^  Winsor's  Memorial  History  of  Boston,  vol.  iii.  p.  212; 
see  also  Bryce,  loc.  cit.  The  word  is  sometimes  incorrectly 
pronounced  "jerrymander."  Mr.  Winsor  observes  that  the 
back  line  of  the  creature's  body  forms  a  profile  caricature  of 
Gerry's  face,  w^ith  the  nose  at  Middleton. 
235 


THE  FEDERAL  UNION 

likely  to  secure  able  men/  It  is  the  American 
custom  to  nominate  only  residents  of  the  district 
as  candidates  for  the  House  of  Representatives. 
A  citizen  of  Albany,  for  example,  would  not  be 
nominated  for  the  district  in  which  Buffalo  is 
situated.  In  the  British  practice,  on  the  other 
hand,  if  an  eminent  man  cannot  get  a  nomina- 
tion in  his  own  county  or  borough,  there  is 
nothing  to  prevent  his  standing  for  any  other 
county  or  borough.  This  system  seems  more 
favourable  to  the  independence  of  the  legislator 
than  our  system.  Some  of  its  advantages  are 
obtained  by  the  election  at  large. 

Congress  must  assemble  at  least  once  in  every 
year,  and  the  constitution  appoints  the  first 
Time  of  Monday  in  December  for  the  time  of 
assembUng  meeting;  but  Congress  can,  if  worth 
while,  enact  a  law  changing  the  time.  The  es- 
tabHshed  custom  is  to  hold  the  election  for  re- 
presentatives upon  the  same  day  as  the  election 
for  president,  the  Tuesday  after  the  first  Mon- 
day in  November.  As  the  period  of  the  new 
administration  does  not  begin  until  the  fourth 
day  of  the  following  March,  the  new  House  of 
Representatives  does  not  assemble  until  the 
December  following  that  date,  unless  the  new 
president  should  at  some  earlier  moment  sum- 
mon an  extra  session  of  Congress.    It  thus  hap- 

^  The  difference  is  similar  to  the  difference  between  the 
French  scrutin  d^ arrondissement  and  scrutin  de  liste. 


THE  FEDERAL  CONGRESS 

pens  that  ordinarily  the  representatives  of  the 
nation  do  not  meet  for  more  than  a  year  after 
their  election  ;  and  as  their  business  is  at  least 
to  give  legislative  expression  to  the  popular 
opinion  which  elected  them,  the  delay  is  in  this 
instance  regarded  by  many  persons  as  incon- 
venient and  injudicious. 

Each  house  is  judge  of  the  elections,  quali- 
fications, and  returns  of  its  own  members  ;  de- 
termines its  own  rules  of  procedure,  and  may 
punish  its  members  for  disorderly  behaviour,  or 
by  a  two  thirds  vote  expel  a  member.  Absent 
members  may  be  compelled  under  penalties  to 
attend.  Each  house  is  required  to  keep  a  journal 
of  its  proceedings  and  at  proper  intervals  to 
publish  it,  except  such  parts  as  for  reasons  of 
public  policy  had  better  be  kept  secret.  At  the 
request  of  one  fifth  of  the  members  present,  the 
yeas  and  nays  must  be  entered  on  the  journal. 
During  the  session  of  Congress  neither  house 
may,  without  consent  of  the  other,  adjourn  for 
more  than  three  days,  or  to  any  other  place  than 
that  in  which  Congress  is  sitting. 

Senators  and  representatives  receive  a  salary 
fixed  by  law,  and  as  they  are  federal  functionaries 
they  are  paid  from  the  federal  treasury.  In  all 
cases,  except  treason  or  felony  or  breach  of  the 
peace,  they  are  privileged  from  arrest  during 
their  attendance  in  Congress,  as  also  while  on 
their  way  to  it  and  while  returning  home ;  "  and 

m 


THE  FEDERAL  UNION 

for  any  speech  or  debate  in  either  house  they 
shall  not  be  questioned  in  any  other  place." 
Privileges  of  Thcsc  provisions  are  reminiscences 
members  ^f  j-j^g  gyjj  days  whcn  the  king  strove 
to  interfere,  by  fair  means  or  foul,  with  free 
speech  in  Parliament ;  and  they  are  important 
enough  to  be  incorporated  in  the  supreme  law 
of  the  land.  No  person  can  at  the  same  time 
hold  any  civil  office  under  the  United  States 
government  and  be  a  member  of  either  house 
of  Congress. 

The  vice-president  is  the  presiding  officer  of 

the  Senate,  with  power  to  vote  only  in  case  of 

a  tie.    The  House  of  Representatives  elects  its 

,    „    ,       presiding   officer,   who   is   called   the 

The  Speaker     ^  °  '  ,       ,  • 

Speaker.  In  the  early  history  of  the 
House  of  Commons,  its  presiding  officer  was 
naturally  enough  its  spokesman.  He  could  speak 
for  it  in  addressing  the  Crown.  Henry  of 
Keighley  thus  addressed  the  Crown  in  1301,  and 
there  were  other  instances  during  that  century, 
until  in  1376  the  title  of  Speaker  was  definitely 
given  to  Sir  Thomas  Hungerford,  and  from 
that  date  the  list  is  unbroken.  The  title  was 
given  to  the  presiding  officers  of  the  American 
colonial  assemblies,  and  thence  it  passed  on  to 
the  state  and  federal  legislatures.  The  Speaker 
presides  over  the  debates,  puts  the  question,  and 
decides  points  of  order.  He  also  appoints  the 
committees  of  the  House  of  Representatives, 
238 


THE  FEDERAL  CONGRESS 

and  as  the  initiatory  work  in  our  legislation  is 
now  so  largely  done  by  the  committees,  this 
makes  him  the  most  powerful  officer  of  the  gov- 
ernment except  the  President. 

The  provisions  for  impeachment  of  public 
officers  are  copied  from  the  custom  in  England. 
Since  the  fourteenth  century  the  House  of 
Commons  has  occasionally  exercised  the  power 
of  impeaching  the  king's  ministers  and  other 
high  public  officers,  and  although  the  power 
was  not  used  during  the  sixteenth  century,  it 
was  afterward  revived  and  conclusively  estab- 
lished. In  1 70 1  it  was  enacted  that  jn^pgach- 
the  royal  pardon  could  not  be  pleaded    "^ent  in 

,  II-  England 

agamst  an  impeachment,  and  this  act 
finally  secured  the  responsibility  of  the  king's 
ministers  to  Parliament.  An  impeachment  is  a 
kind  of  accusation  or  indictment  brought  against 
a  public  officer  by  the  House  of  Commons. 
The  court  in  which  the  case  is  tried  is  the  House 
of  Lords,  and  the  ordinary  rules  of  judicial  pro- 
cedure are  followed.  The  regular  president  of 
the  House  of  Lords  is  the  Lord  Chancellor, 
who  is  the  highest  judicial  officer  in  the  king- 
dom. A  simple  majority  vote  secures  convic- 
tion, and  then  it  is  left  for  the  House  of 
Commons  to  say  whether  judgment  shall  be 
pronounced  or  not. 

In  the  United  States  the  House  of  Repre- 
sentatives has  the  sole  power  of  impeachment, 
239 


THE  FEDERAL  UNION 

and  the  Senate  has  the  sole  power  to  try  all  im- 
peachments. When  the  President  of  the  United 
im  each-  Statcs  is  tried,  the  chief  justice  must 
ment  in  the     prcsidc.    As  a  prccaution  against  the 

United  States     ^  ^    .  ,  f. 

use  or  impeachment  tor  party  pur- 
poses, a  two  thirds  vote  is  required  for  con- 
viction ;  and  this  precaution  proved  effectual 
(fortunately,  as  most  persons  now  admit)  in  the 
famous  case  of  President  Johnson  in  1868.  In 
case  of  conviction  the  judgment  cannot  extend 
further  than  "  to  removal  from  office,  and  dis- 
qualification to  hold  and  enjoy  any  office  of 
honour,  trust,  or  profit  under  the  United 
States  ;  "  but  the  person  convicted  is  liable  after- 
ward to  be  tried  and  punished  by  the  ordinary 
process  of  law. 

The  provisions  of  the  Constitution  for  legis- 
lation are  admirably  simple.  All  bills  for  raising 
revenue  must  originate  in  the  lower  house,  but 
the  upper  house  may  propose  or  concur  with 
amendments,  as  on  other  bills.  This  provision 
was  inherited  from  Parliament,  through  the 
colonial  legislatures.  After  a  bill  has  passed 
both  houses  it  must  be  sent  to  the  president 
for  approval.  If  he  approves  it,  he  signs  it ;  if 
not,  he  returns  it  to  the  house  in  which  it  origi- 
Veto  power  natcd,  with  a  written  statement  of  his 
ofthepresi-  objcctions,  and  this  statement  must 
be  entered  in  full  upon  the  journal 
of  the  house.  The  bill  is  then  reconsidered, 
240 


THE  FEDERAL  CONGRESS 

and  if  it  obtains  a  two  thirds  vote,  it  is  sent, 
together  with  the  objections,  to  the  other  house. 
If  it  there  likewise  obtains  a  two  thirds  vote,  it 
becomes  a  law,  in  spite  of  the  objections.  Other- 
wise it  fails.  If  the  president  keeps  a  bill  longer 
than  ten  days  (Sundays  excepted)  without  sign- 
ing it,  it  becomes  a  law  without  his  signature ; 
unless  Congress  adjourns  before  the  expiration 
of  the  ten  days,  in  which  case  it  fails  to  become 
a  law,  just  as  if  it  had  been  vetoed.  This  method 
of  vetoing  a  bill  just  before  the  expiration  of  a 
Congress,  by  keeping  it  in  one's  pocket,  so  to 
speak,  was  dubbed  a  "  pocket  veto,"  and  was 
first  employed  by  President  Jackson  in  1829. 
The  president's  veto  power  is  a  qualified  form 
of  that  which  formerly  belonged  to  the  English 
sovereign,  but  has  now,  as  already  observed, 
become  practically  obsolete.  As  a  means  of 
guarding  the  country  against  unwise  legislation, 
it  has  proved  to  be  one  of  the  most  valuable 
features  of  our  Federal  Constitution.  In  bad 
hands  it  cannot  do  much  harm  ;  it  can  only 
delay  for  a  short  time  a  needed  law.  But  when 
properly  used  it  can  save  the  country  from  laws 
that  if  once  enacted  would  sow  seeds  of  disaster 
very  hard  to  eradicate ;  and  it  has  repeatedly 
done  so.  A  single  man  will  often  act  intelligently 
where  a  group  of  men  act  foolishly,  and,  as 
already  observed,  he  is  apt  to  have  a  keener 
sense  of  responsibility. 

241 


THE  FEDERAL  UNION 

§  3.  The  Federal  Executive. 

In  signing  or  vetoing  bills  passed  by  Congress 
the  president  shares  in  legislation,  and  is  virtu- 
ally a  third  house.  In  his  other  capacities  he  is 
the  chief  executive  officer  of  the  Federal  Union  ; 
and  inasmuch  as  he  appoints  the  other  great 
executive  officers,  he  is  really  the  head  of  the 
executive  department,  not  —  like  the  governor 
of  a  state  —  a  mere  member  of  it.  His  title  of 
"President"  is  probably  an  inheritance  from 
The  title  ^^^  prcsidcnts  of  the  Continental  Con- 
of  "Presi-  gress.  In  Franklin's  plan  of  union, 
in  1754,  the  head  of  the  executive 
department  was  called  "  Governor  General," 
but  that  title  had  an  unpleasant  sound  to 
American  ears.  Our  great-grandfathers  liked 
"  president  "  better,  somewhat  as  the  Romans, 
in  the  eighth  century  of  their  city,  preferred 
**  imperator  "  to  "  rex."  Then,  as  it  served  to 
distinguish  widely  between  the  head  of  the 
Union  and  the  heads  of  the  states,  it  soon  fell 
into  disuse  in  the  state  governments,  and  thus 
"  president  "  has  come  to  be  a  much  grander 
title  than  "governor,"  just  as  "emperor"  has 
come  to  be  a  grander  title  than  "  king."  ^ 

There  was  no  question  which  perplexed  the 
Federal  Convention  more  than  the  question  as 
to  the  best  method  of  electing  the  president. 

See  above,  p.  180. 
242 


THE  FEDERAL  EXECUTIVE 

There  was  a  general  distrust  of  popular  election 
for  an  office  so  exalted.  At  one  time  the  Con- 
vention decided  to  have  the  president  elected 
by  Congress,  but  there  was  a  grave  objection  to 
this  ;  it  would  be  likely  to  destroy  his  independ- 
ence, and  make  him  the  tool  of  Congress. 
Finally  the  device  of  an  electoral  col-  The  electoral 
lege  was  adopted.  Each  state  is  en-  '^°^^^^ 
titled  to  a  number  of  electors  equal  to  the  num- 
ber of  its  representatives  in  Congress,  p/us  two, 
the  number  of  its  senators.  Thus  to-day  Dela- 
ware, with  one  representative,  has  three  electors  ; 
Missouri,  with  fourteen  representatives,  has  six- 
teen electors  ;  New  York,  with  thirty-four  repre- 
sentatives, has  thirty-six  electors.  No  federal 
senator  or  representative,  or  any  person  holding 
civil  office  under  the  United  States,  can  serve  as 
an  elector.  Each  state  may  appoint  or  choose  its 
electors  in  such  manner  as  it  sees  fit ;  at  first 
they  were  more  often  than  otherwise  chosen  by 
the  legislatures,  now  they  are  always  elected 
by  the  people.  The  day  of  election  must  be  the 
same  in  all  the  states. 

By  an  act  of  Congress  passed  in  1792  it  is 
required  to  be  within  thirty-four  days  preceding 
the  first  Wednesday  in  December.  A  subsequent 
act  in  1845  appointed  the  Tuesday  following 
the  first  Monday  in  November  as  election 
day. 

By  the  act  of  1792  the  electors  chosen  in 
243 


THE  FEDERAL  UNION 

each  state  are  required  to  assemble  on  the  first 
Wednesday  in  December  at  some  place  in  the 
state  which  is  designated  by  the  legislature. 
Before  this  date  the  governor  of  the  state  must 
cause  a  certified  list  of  the  names  of  the  electors 
to  be  made  out  in  triplicate  and  delivered  to  the 
electors.  Having  met  together  they  vote  for 
president  and  vice-president,  make  out  a  sealed 
certificate  of  their  vote  in  triplicate,  and  attach  to 
each  copy  a  copy  of  the  certified  list  of  their 
names.  One  copy  must  be  delivered  by  a  mes- 
senger to  the  president  of  the  Senate  at  the  fed- 
eral capital  before  the  first  Wednesday  in  Jan- 
uary ;  the  second  is  sent  to  the  same  officer 
through  the  mail ;  the  third  is  to  be  deposited 
with  the  federal  judge  of  the  district  in  which 
the  electors  meet.  If  by  the  first  Wednesday  in 
January  the  certificate  has  not  been  received  at 
the  federal  capital,  the  secretary  of  state  is  to 
send  a  messenger  to  the  district  judge  and  obtain 
the  copy  deposited  with  him.  The  interval  of 
a  month  was  allowed  to  get  the  returns  in,  for 
those  were  not  the  days  of  railroad  and  tele- 
graph. The  messengers  were  allowed  twenty- 
five  cents  a  mile,  and  were  subject  to  a  fine  of 
a  thousand  dollars  for  neglect  of  duty.  On  the 
second  Wednesday  in  February,  Congress  is  re- 
quired to  be  in  session,  and  the  votes  received 
are  counted  and  the  result  declared.^ 

^  By  the  act  of  February  3,  1887,  the  second  Monday  in 
244 


THE  FEDERAL  EXECUTIVE 

At  first  the  electoral  votes  did  not  state 
whether  the  candidates  named  in  them  were 
candidates  for  the  presidency  or  for  the  vice- 
presidency.  Each  elector  simply  wrote  down 
two  names,  only  one  of  which  could  be  the 
name  of  a  citizen  of  his  own  state.  In  the 
official  count  the  candidate  who  had  the  largest 
number  of  votes,  provided  they  were  a  majority 
of  the  whole  number,  was  declared  president, 
and  the  candidate  who  had  the  next  to  the 
largest  number  was  declared  vice-president. 
The  natural  result  of  this  was  seen  in  the  first 
contested  election  in  1796,  which  made  Adams 
president,  and  his  antagonist  vice-president.  In 
the  next  election  in  1800  it  gave  to  Jefferson 
and  his  colleague  Burr  exactly  the  same  number 
of  votes.  In  such  a  case  the  House  of  Repre- 
sentatives must  elect,  and  such  intrigues  followed 
for  the  purpose  of  defeating  Jefferson  that  the 
country  was  brought  to  the  verge  of  civil  war. 
It  thus  became  necessary  to  change  the  method. 
By  the  twelfth  amendment  to  the  Con-  ^j^^  ^^^j^ 
stitution,  declared  in  force  in  1804,  amendment 
the  present  method  was  adopted.  °'^ 
The  electors  make  separate  ballots  for  president 

January  is  fixed  for  the  meeting  of  the  electoral  colleges  in  all 
the  states.  The  provisions  relating  to  the  first  Wednesday  in 
January  are  repealed.  The  interval  between  the  second  Mon- 
day in  January  and  the  second  Wednesday  in  February  re- 
mains available  for  the  settlement  of  disputed  questions. 

245 


THE  FEDERAL  UNION 

and  for  vice-president.  In  the  official  count  the 
votes  for  president  are  first  inspected.  If  no 
candidate  has  a  majority,  then  the  House  of 
Representatives  must  immediately  choose  the 
president  from  the  three  names  highest  on  the 
list.  In  this  choice  the  house  votes  by  states, 
each  state  having  one  vote ;  a  quorum  for  this 
purpose  must  consist  of  at  least  one  member 
from  two  thirds  of  the  states,  and  a  majority 
of  all  the  states  is  necessary  for  a  choice.  Then 
if  no  candidate  for  the  vice-presidency  has  a 
majority,  the  Senate  makes  its  choice  from  the 
two  names  highest  on  the  list ;  a  quorum  for 
the  purpose  consists  of  two  thirds  of  the  whole 
number  of  senators,  and  a  majority  of  the  whole 
number  is  necessary  to  a  choice.  Since  this 
amendment  was  made  there  has  been  one  in- 
stance of  an  election  of  the  president  by  the 
House  of  Representatives,  —  that  of  John 
Quincy  Adams  in  1825  ;  and  there  has  been 
one  instance  of  an  election  of  the  vice-president 
by  the  Senate,  —  that  of  Richard  Mentor  John- 
son in  1837. 

One  serious  difficulty  was  not  yet  foreseen 
and  provided  for,  —  that  of  deciding  between 
two  conflicting  returns  sent  in  by  two  hostile 
sets  of  electors  in  the  same  state,  each  list  being 
certified  by  one  of  two  rival  governors  claiming 
authority  in  the  same  state.  Such  a  case  oc- 
curred in  1877,  when  Florida,  Louisiana,  and 
246 


THE  FEDERAL  EXECUTIVE 

South  Carolina  were  the  scene  of  struggles  be- 
tween rival  governments.  Ballots  for  Tilden 
and  ballots  for  Hayes  were  sent  in  at  the  same 
time  from  these  states,  and  in  the  absence  ot 
any  recognized  means  of  determining    ^^    , 

•'.  O  O     The  electoral 

which  ballots  to  count,  the  two  parties  commission 
in  Congress  submitted  the  result  to  ^'  ''''^ 
arbitration.  An  "  electoral  commission  "  was 
created  for  the  occasion,  composed  of  five  sen- 
ators, five  representatives,  and  five  judges  of 
the  supreme  court ;  and  this  body  decided  what 
votes  were  to  be  counted.  It  was  a  clumsy  ex- 
pedient, but  infinitely  preferable  to  civil  war. 
The  question  of  conflicting  returns  has  at  length 
been  set  at  rest  by  the  act  of  1887,  which  pro- 
vides that  no  electoral  votes  can  be  rejected  in 
counting  except  by  the  concurrent  action  of  the 
two  houses  of  Congress. 

The  devolution  of  the  presidential  office  in 
case  of  the  president's  death  has  also  been  made 
the  subject  of  legislative  change  and  amendment. 
The  office  of  vice-president  was  created  chiefly 
for  the  purpose  of  meeting  such  an  emergency. 
Upon  the  accession  of  the  vice-president  to  the 
presidency,  the  Senate  would  proceed  to  elect 
its  own  president  pro  tempore.  An  act  of  1791 
provided  that  in  case  of  the  death,  resignation, 
or  disability  of  both  president  and  Presidential 
vice-president,  the  succession  should  succession 
devolve  first  upon  the  president  pro  tempore  of 
247 


THE  FEDERAL  UNION 

the  Senate  and  then  upon  the  speaker  of  the 
House  of  Representatives,  until  the  disability 
should  be  removed  or  a  new  election  be  held. 
But  supposing  a  newly  elected  president  to  die 
and  be  succeeded  by  the  vice-president  before 
the  assembling  of  the  newly  elected  Congress  ; 
then  there  would  be  no  president  pro  tempore 
of  the  Senate  and  no  speaker  of  the  House  of 
Representatives,  and  thus  the  death  of  one  per- 
son might  cause  the  presidency  to  lapse.  More- 
over the  presiding  officers  of  the  two  houses  of 
Congress  might  be  members  of  the  party  de- 
feated in  the  last  presidential  election  ;  indeed, 
this  is  often  the  case.  Sound  policy  and  fair 
dealing  require  that  a  victorious  party  shall  not 
be  turned  out  because  of  the  death  of  the  presi- 
dent and  vice-president.  Accordingly  an  act  of 
1886  provided  that  in  such  an  event  the  suc- 
cession should  devolve  upon  the  members  of 
the  cabinet  in  the  following  order :  secretary  of 
state,  secretary  of  the  treasury,  secretary  of  war, 
attorney-general,  postmaster-general,  secretary 
of  the  navy,  secretary  of  the  interior.  This 
would  seem  to  be  ample  provision  against  a 
lapse. 

To  return  to  the  electoral  college  ;  it  was  de- 
vised as  a  safeguard  against  popular  excitement. 
It  was  supposed  that  the  electors  in  their  De- 
cember meeting  would  calmly  discuss  the 
merits  of  the  ablest  men  in  the  country  and 
248 


THE  FEDERAL  EXECUTIVE 

make  an  intelligent  selection  for  the  presidency. 
The  electors  were  to  use  their  own  judgment, 
and  it  was  not  necessary  that  all  the  electors 
chosen  in  one  state  should  vote  for  original  pur- 
the  same  candidate.  The  people  on  pose  of  the 
election  day  were  not  supposed  to  be  kge  not  Pi- 
voting for  a  president  but  for  presi-  ^^^^ 
dential  electors.  This  theory  was  never  realized. 
The  two  elections  of  Washington,  in  1788  and 
1792,  were  unanimous.  In  the  second  con- 
tested election,  that  of  1 800,  the  electors  simply 
registered  the  result  of  the  popular  vote,  and  it 
has  been  so  ever  since.  Immediately  after  the 
popular  election,  a  whole  month  before  the 
meeting  of  the  electoral  college,  we  know  who 
is  to  be  the  next  president.  There  is  no  law  to 
prevent  an  elector  from  voting  for  a  different 
pair  of  candidates  from  those  at  the  head  of  the 
party  ticket,  but  the  custom  has  become  as 
binding  as  a  statute.  The  elector  is  chosen  to 
vote  for  specified  candidates,  and  he  must  do  so. 
On  the  other  hand,  it  was  not  until  long 
after  1800  that  all  the  electoral  votes  of  the 
same  state  were  necessarily  given  to  ^^^^^^^^ 
the  same  pair  of  candidates.     It  was    formerly 

1  chosen  in 

customary  m  many  states  to  choose    many  states 
the  electors  by  districts.     A  state  en-    ^y  districts ; 

•'  111  "°^  usually 

titled  to  ten    electors  would    choose    on  a  general 
eight  of  them  in  its  eight  congressional 
districts,  and  there  were  various  ways  of  choos- 
249 


THE  FEDERAL  UNION 

Ing  the  other  two.  In  some  of  the  districts  one 
party  would  have  a  majority,  in  others  the 
other,  and  so  the  electoral  vote  of  the  state 
would  be  divided  between  two  pairs  of  candi- 
dates. After  1830  it  became  customary  to 
choose  the  electors  upon  a  general  ticket,  and 
thus  the  electoral  vote  became  solid  in  each 
state.^ 

This  system,  of  course,  increases  the  chances 
of  electing  presidents  who  have  received  a  minor- 
Minority  ity  of  the  popular  vote.  A  candidate 
presidents  j^^y-  carry  One  state  by  an  immense 
majority  and  thus  gain  six  or  eight  electoral  votes ; 
he  may  come  within  a  few  hundred  of  carrying 
another  state  and  thus  lose  thirty-six  electoral 
votes.  Or  a  small  third  party  may  divert  some 
thousands  of  votes  from  the  principal  candi- 
date without  affecting  the  electoral  vote  of  the 
state.  Since  Washington's  second  term  we  have 
had  twenty-five  contested  elections,^  and  in 
nine  of  these  the  elected  president  has  failed  to 
receive  a  majority  of  the  popular  vote  ;  Adams 
in  1824  (elected  by  the  House  of  Representa- 

^  In  i860  the  vote  of  New  Jersey  was  divided  between 
Lincoln  and  Douglas,  but  that  was  because  the  names  of  three 
of  the  seven  Douglas  electors  were  upon  two  different  tickets, 
and  thus  got  a  majority  of  votes  while  the  other  four  fell 
short.  In  1892  the  state  of  Michigan  chose  its  electors  by 
districts. 

^  All  have  been  contested,  except   Monroe's  reelection  in 
1820,  when  there  was  no  opposing  candidate. 
250 


THE  FEDERAL  EXECUTIVE 

tives),  Polk  in  1844,  Taylor  in  1848,  Buchanan 
in  1856,  Lincoln  in  i860,  Hayes  in  1876, 
Garfield  in  1880,  Cleveland  in  1884,  Harrison 
in  1888.  This  has  suggested  more  or  less  vague 
speculation  as  to  the  advisableness  of  changing 
the  method  of  electing  the  president.  It  has 
been  suggested  that  it  would  be  well  to  abolish 
the  electoral  college,  and  resort  to  a  direct  pop- 
ular vote,  without  reference  to  state  lines.  Such 
a  method  would  be  open  to  one  serious  objec- 
tion. In  a  closely  contested  election  on  the 
present  method  the  result  may  remain  doubt- 
ful   for  three  or    four  days,  while  a 

f.  .  Advantages 

narrow  majority  or  a  tew  hundred  oftheeiecto- 
votes  in  some  great  state  is  being  as-  "'  ^^^^^"^ 
certained  by  careful  counting.  It  was  so  in 
1884.  This  period  of  doubt  is  sure  to  be  a 
period  of  intense  and  dangerous  excitement.  In 
an  election  without  reference  to  states,  the  re- 
sult would  more  often  be  doubtful,  and  it  would 
be  sometimes  necessary  to  count  every  vote  in 
every  little  out-of-the-way  corner  of  the  coun- 
try before  the  question  could  be  settled.  The 
occasions  for  dispute  would  be  multiplied  a 
hundred-fold,  with  most  demoralizing  effect. 
Our  present  method  is  doubtless  clumsy,  but 
the  solidity  of  the  electoral  colleges  is  a  safe- 
guard, and  as  all  parties  understand  the  system 
it  is  in  the  long  run  as  fair  for  one  as  for  an- 
other. 

251 


THE  FEDERAL  UNION 

The  Constitution  says  nothing  about  the 
method  of  nominating  candidates  for  the  presi- 
dency, neither  has  it  been  made  the  subject  of 
legislation.  It  has  been  determined  by  conven- 
ience. It  was  not  necessary  to  nominate  Wash- 
ington, and  the  candidacies  of  Adams  and 
Jefferson  were  also  matters  of  general  under- 
standing. In  1 800  the  Republican  and  Federalist 
members  of  Congress  respectively  held  secret 
Nomination  meetings  or  caucuses,  chiefly  for  the 
of  candidates  purposc  of  agreeing  upon  candidates 
sionai  caucus  for  the  vice-presidency  and  making 
(1800-24)  some  plans  for  the  canvass.  It  be- 
came customary  to  nominate  candidates  in  such 
congressional  caucuses,  but  there  was  much  hos- 
tile comment  upon  the  system  as  undemocratic. 
Sometimes  the  "  favourite  son  "  of  a  state  was 
nominated  by  the  legislature,  but  as  the  means 
of  travel  improved,  the  nominating  convention 
came  to  be  preferred.  In  1824  there  were  four 
candidates  for  the  presidency, — Adams,  Jack- 
son, Clay,  and  Crawford.  Adams  was  nomi- 
nated by  the  legislatures  of  most  of  the  New 
England  states ;  Clay  by  the  legislature  of 
Kentucky,  followed  by  the  legislatures  of  Mis- 
souri, Ohio,  Illinois,  and  Louisiana ;  Crawford 
by  the  legislature  of  Virginia ;  and  Jackson  by 
a  mass  convention  of  the  people  of  Blount 
County  in  Tennessee,  followed  by  local  con- 
ventions in  many  other  states.  The  congres- 
252 


THE  FEDERAL  EXECUTIVE 

slonal  caucus  met  and  nominated  Crawford,  but 
this  indorsement  did  not  help  him,^  and  this 
method  was  no  longer  tried.  In  1832  for  the 
first  time  the  candidates  were  all  nominated  in 
national  conventions. 

These  conventions,  as  fully  developed,  are 
representative  bodies  chosen  for  the  specific 
purpose  of  nominating  candidates  and  Nominating 
making  those  declarations  of  principle  conventions 
and  policy  known  as  "  platforms."  Each  state 
is  allowed  twice  as  many  delegates  as  it  has 
electoral  votes.  "  The  delegates  are  chosen  by 
local  conventions  in  their  several  states,  viz., 
two  for  each  congressional  district  by  the  party 
convention  of  that  district,  and  four  for  the 
whole  state  (called  delegates-at-large)  by  the 
state  convention.  As  each  convention  is  com- 
posed of  delegates  from  primaries,  it  is  the  com- 
position of  the  primaries  which  determines  that 
of  the  local  conventions,  and  it  is  the  composi- 
tion of  the  local  conventions  which  determines 
that  of  the  national."  ^  The  "  primary  "  is  the 
smallest  nominating  convention.  It  stands  in 
somewhat  the  same  relation  to  the  national  con- 
vention as  the  relation  of  a  township  The "  pri- 
or ward  to  the  whole  United  States.  "'^''^ " 
A  primary  is  a  little  caucus  of  all  the  voters  of 

^  Stanwood,  History  of  Presidential  Electmis,  pp.  80-83. 
^  Bryce,   American   Commonwealth,  vol.  ii.  p.    145  ;  see 
also  p.  52. 


THE  FEDERAL  UNION 

one  party  who  live  within  the  bounds  of  the 
township  or  ward.  It  differs  in  composition 
from  the  town-meeting  in  that  all  its  members 
belong  to  one  party.  It  has  two  duties  :  one  is 
to  nominate  candidates  for  the  local  offices  of 
the  township  or  ward  ;  the  other  is  to  choose 
delegates  to  the  county  or  district  convention. 
The  primary,  as  its  name  indicates,  is  a  primary 
and  not  a  representative  assembly.  The  party 
voters  in  a  township  or  ward  are  usually  not  too 
numerous  to  meet  together,  and  all  ought  to 
attend  such  meetings,  though  in  practice  too 
many  people  stay  away.  By  the  representative 
system,  through  various  grades  of  convention, 
the  wishes  and  character  of  these  countless  little 
primaries  are  at  length  expressed  in  the  wishes 
and  character  of  the  national  party  convention, 
and  candidates  for  the  presidency  and  vice-pre- 
sidency are  nominated. 

The  qualifications  for  the  two  offices  are  of 
course  the  same.  Foreign-born  citizens  are  not 
eligible,  though  this  restriction  did  not 
tions  for  the  mcludc  such  as  werc  Citizens  of  the 
presidency  u^jted  States  at  the  time  when  the 
Constitution  was  adopted.  The  candidate  must 
have  reached  the  age  of  thirty-five,  and  must 
have  been  fourteen  years  a  resident  of  the 
United  States. 

The  president's  term  of  office  is  four  years. 
The  Constitution  says  nothing  about  his  re- 
254 


THE  FEDERAL  EXECUTIVE 

election,  and  there  is  no  written  law  to  prevent 
his  being  reelected  a  dozen  times.  But  Wash- 
ington after  serving  two  terms  refused  The  term  of 
to  accept  the  office  a  third  time.  Jef-  °*" 
ferson  in  1 808  was  "  earnestly  besought  by 
many  and  influential  bodies  of  citizens  to  be- 
come a  candidate  for  a  third  term  ; "  ^  and  had 
he  consented  there  is  scarcely  a  doubt  that  he 
would  have  been  elected.  His  refusal  estab- 
lished a  custom  which  has  never  been  infringed, 
though  there  were  persons  in  1876  and  again  in 
1880  who  wished  to  secure  a  third  term  for 
Grant. 

The  president  is  commander-in-chief  of  the 
military  and  naval  forces  of  the  United  States, 
and  of  the  militia  of  the  several  states    „ 

rowers  and 

when  actually  engaged  in  the  service    duties  of  the 
of  the  United  States ;  and  he  has  the    ^'^"'  ^""^ 
royal  prerogative  of  granting  reprieves  and  par- 
dons  for  offences   against   the    United   States, 
except  in  cases  of  impeachment.^ 

He  can  make  treaties  with  foreign  powers,  but 
they  must  be  confirmed  by  a  two  thirds  vote  of 
the  Senate.  He  appoints  ministers  to  foreign 
countries,  consuls,  and  the  greater  federal  of- 
ficers, such  as  the  heads  of  executive  depart- 
ments and  judges  of  the  Supreme  Court,  and 
all  these  appointments  are  subject  to  confirma- 
tion by  the   Senate.    He  also   appoints  a  vast 

^  Morse's  Jefferson,  p.  318.  *  See  above,  p.  239. 


THE  FEDERAL  UNION 

number  of  inferior  officers,  such  as  postmasters 
and  revenue  collectors,  without  the  participation 
of  the  Senate.  When  vacancies  occur  during  the 
recess  of  the  Senate,  he  may  fill  them  by  grant- 
ing commissions  to  expire  at  the  end  of  the  next 
session.  He  commissions  all  federal  officers. 
He  receives  foreign  ministers.  He  may  summon 
either  or  both  houses  of  Congress  to  an  extra 
session,  and  if  the  two  houses  disagree  with  re- 
gard to  the  time  of  adjournment,  he  may  adjourn 
them  to  such  time  as  he  thinks  best,  but  of 
course  not  beyond  the  day  fixed  for  the  begin- 
ning of  the  next  regular  session. 

The  president  must  from  time  to  time  make 
a  report  to  Congress  on  the  state  of  affairs  in 
the  country  and  suggest  such  a  line  of  policy 
or  such  special  measures  as  may  seem  good  to 
^^  him.    This  report  has  taken  the  form 

The  presi-  '^    , 

dent's  mes-  of  an  annual  written  message.  Wash- 
^^^^  ington  and  Adams  began  their  admin- 

istrations by  addressing  Congress  in  a  speech, 
to  which  Congress  replied  ;  but  it  suited  the 
opposite  party  to  discover  in  this  an  imitation 
of  the  British  practice  of  opening  Parliament 
with  a  speech  from  the  sovereign.  It  was  ac- 
cordingly stigmatized  as  "  monarchical,"  and 
Jefferson  (though  without  formally  alleging  any 
such  reason)  set  the  example,  which  has  been 
followed  ever  since,  of  addressing  Congress  in 


256 


THE  FEDERAL  EXECUTIVE 

a  written  mes^age.^  Besides  this  annual  mes- 
sage, the  president  may  at  any  time  send  in  a 
special  message  relating  to  matters  which  in  his 
opinion  require  immediate  attention. 

The  effectiveness  of  a  president's  message 
depends  of  course  on  the  character  of  the  presi- 
dent and  the  general  features  of  the  political 
situation.  That  separation  between  the  execu- 
tive and  legislative  departments,  which  is  one 
of  the  most  distinctive  features  of  civil  govern- 
ment in  the  United  States,  tends  to  prevent  the 
development  of  leadership.  An  English  prime 
minister's  policy,  so  long  as  he  remains  in 
office,  must  be  that  of  the  House  of  Com- 
mons ;  power  and  responsibility  are  concen- 
trated. An  able  president  may  virtually  direct 
the  policy  of  his  party  in  Congress,  but  he  often 
has  a  majority  against  him  in  one  house  and 
sometimes  in  both  at  once.  Thus  in  dividing 
power  we  divide  and  weaken  responsibility.  To 
this  point  I  have  already  alluded  as  illustrated 
in  our  state  governments.^ 

The  Constitution  made  no  specific  provi- 
sions for  the  creation  of  executive  departments, 
but  left  the  matter  to  Congress.    At  the  be- 

^  JeiFerson,  moreover,  was  a  powerful  writer  and  a  poor 
speaker. 

^  The  English  method,  however,  would  probably  not  work 
well  in  this  country,  and  might  prove  to  be  a  source  of  great 
and  complicated  dangers.    See  above,  p.  187. 
257 


THE  FEDERAL  UNION 

ginning  of  Washington's  administration  three 
secretaryships  were  created,  —  those  of  state, 
Executive  treasury,  and  war ;  and  an  attorney 
departments  general  was  appointed.  Afterward  the 
department  of  the  navy  was  separated  from  that 
of  war,  the  postmaster-general  was  made  a  mem- 
ber of  the  administration,  and  as  lately  as  1 849 
the  department  of  the  interior  was  organized. 
The  heads  of  these  departments  are  the  presi- 
dent's advisers,  but  they  have  as  a  body  no 
recognized  legal  existence  or  authority.  They 
hold  their  meetings  in  a  room  at  the  presi- 
dent's executive  mansion,  the  White  House, 
but  no  record  is  kept  of  their  proceedings, 
and  the  president  is  not  bound  to  heed  their 
advice.  This  body  has  always  been  called 
the  "  Cabinet,"  after  the  English  usage.  It 
is   like  the   English  cabinet  in  being 

The  cabinet  ,         r    i  i  r  •  j 

composed  or  heads  or  executive  de- 
partments and  in  being,  as  a  body,  unknown 
to  the  law ;  in  other  respects  the  difference  is 
very  great.  The  English  cabinet  is  the  execu- 
tive committee  of  the  House  of  Commons, 
and  exercises  a  guiding  and  directing  influence 
upon  legislation.  The  position  of  the  president 
is  not  at  all  like  that  of  the  prime  minis- 
ter ;  it  is  more  like  that  of  the  English  sover- 
eign, though  the  latter  has  not  nearly  so  much 
power  as  the  president ;  and  the  American  cab- 
inet in  some  respects  resembles  the  English 
258 


THE  FEDERAL  EXECUTIVE 

privy   council,    though    it    cannot   make   ordi- 
nances. 

The  secretary  of  state  ranks  first  among  our 
cabinet  officers.  He  is  often  called  our  prime 
minister  or  "  premier,"  but  there  could  not 
be  a  more  absurd  use  of  language.  In  order  to 
make  an  American  personage  corresponding 
to  the  English  prime  minister  we  must  first  go 
to  the  House  of  Representatives,  take  its  com- 
mittee of  ways  and  means  and  its  com- 

.      .  .  The  secre- 

mittee  on  appropriations,  and  unite  tary  of 
them  into  one  committee  of  finance  ;  ^^^^ 
then  we  must  take  the  chairman  of  this  com- 
mittee, give  him  the  power  of  dissolving  the 
House  and  ordering  a  new  election,  and  make 
him  master  of  all  the  executive  departments, 
while  at  the  same  time  we  strip  from  the  presi- 
dent all  real  control  over  the  administration. 
This  exalted  finance-chairman  would  be  much 
like  the  First  Lord  of  the  Treasury,  commonly 
called  the  prime  minister.  This  illustration 
shows  how  wide  the  divergence  has  become  be- 
tween our  system  and  that  of  Great  Britain. 

Our  secretary  of  state  is  our  minister  of  for- 
eign affairs,  and  is  the  only  officer  who  is  au- 
thorized to  communicate  with  other  govern- 
ments in  the  name  of  the  president.  He  is  at 
the  head  of  the-diplomatic  and  consular  service, 
issuing  the  instructions  to  our  ministers  abroad, 
and  he  takes  a  leading  part  in  the  negotiation 
259 


THE  FEDERAL  UNION 

of  treaties.  To  these  ministerial  duties  he  adds 
some  that  are  more  characteristic  of  his  title  of 
secretary.  He  keeps  the  national  archives,  and 
superintends  the  publication  of  laws,  treaties, 
and  proclamations  ;  and  he  is  the  keeper  of  the 
great  seal  of  the  United  States. 

Our  foreign  relations  are  cared  for  in  foreign 
countries  by  two  distinct  classes  of  officials  : 
ministers  and  consuls.  The  former  represent 
the  United  States  government  in  a  diplomatic 
capacity  ;  the  latter  have  nothing  to  do  with 
_. ,  diplomacy  or  politics,  but  look  after 

Diplomatic  ^  ^  ...  ,         -        . 

and  consular     our   Commercial    interests   in  foreign 

service  •  ^~^  1  ' 

countries.  Consuls  exercise  a  protect- 
ive care  over  seamen,  and  perform  various 
duties  for  Americans  abroad.  They  can  take 
testimony  and  administer  estates.  In  some  non- 
Christian  countries,  such  as  China,  Japan,  and 
Turkey,  they  have  jurisdiction  over  criminal 
cases  in  which  Americans  are  concerned.  For- 
merly our  ministers  abroad  were  of  only  three 
grades:  (i)  "envoys  extraordinary  and  min- 
isters plenipotentiary  ;  "  (2)  "  ministers  resi- 
dent; "  (3)  charges  d'affaires.  The  first  two  are 
accredited  by  the  president  to  the  head  of  gov- 
ernment of  the  countries  to  which  they  are  sent; 
the  third  are  accredited  by  the  secretary  of  state 
to  the  minister  of  foreign  affairs-in  the  countries 
to  which  they  are  sent.  We  still  retain  these 
grades,  which  correspond  to  the  lower  grades 
260 


THE  FEDERAL  EXECUTIVE 

of  the  diplomatic  service  in  European  countries. 
Until  lately  we  had  no  highest  grade  answering 
to  that  of  "  ambassador,"  perhaps  because  when 
our  diplomatic  service  was  organized  the  United 
States  did  not  yet  rank  among  first-rate  powers, 
and  could  not  expect  to  receive  ambassadors. 
Great  powers,  like  France  and  Germany,  send 
ambassadors  to  each  other,  and  envoys  to  infe- 
rior powers,  like  Denmark  or  Greece  or  Gua- 
temala. When  we  send  envoys  to  the  great 
powers,  we  rank  ourselves  along  with  inferior 
powers ;  and  diplomatic  etiquette  as  a  rule 
obliges  the  great  powers  to  send  to  us  the  same 
grade  of  minister  that  we  send  to  them.  There 
were  found  to  be  some  practical  inconveniences 
about  this,  so  that  in  1892  the  highest  grade 
was  adopted  and  our  ministers  to  Great  Britain 
and  France  were  made  ambassadors. 

The   cabinet  officer   second  in  rank  and  in 
some  respects  first  in  importance  is  the  secretary 
of  the    treasury.     He    conducts   the    Thesecre- 
financial  business  of  the  government,    taryofthe 
superintends  the  collection  of  revenue, 
and  gives  warrants  for  the  payment  of  moneys 
from   the  treasury.    He  also  superintends  the 
coinage,  the  national  banks,  the  custom-houses, 
the   coast-survey    and    lighthouse  system,   the 
marine  hospitals,  and  life-saving  service.^    He 

^  Many  of  these  details  concerning  the  executive  depart- 
nnents  are  admirably  summarized,  and  with  more  fulness  than 
261 


THE  FEDERAL  UNION 

sends  reports  to  Congress,  and  suggests  such 
measures  as  seem  good  to  him.  Since  the  Civil 
War  his  most  weighty  business  has  been  the 
management  of  the  national  debt.  He  is  aided 
by  two  assistant  secretaries,  six  auditors,  a  regis- 
ter, a  comptroller,  a  solicitor,  a  director  of  the 
mint,  commissioner  of  internal  revenue,  chiefs 
of  the  bureau  of  statistics  and  bureau  of  engrav- 
ing and  printing,  etc.  The  business  of  the 
treasury  department  is  enormous,  and  no  part 
of  our  government  has  been  more  faithfully  ad- 
ministered. Since  1789  the  treasury  has  dis- 
bursed more  than  seven  billions  of  dollars  with- 
out one  serious  defalcation.  No  man  directly 
interested  in  trade  or  commerce  can  be  appointed 
secretary  of  the  treasury,  and  the  department 
has  almost  always  been  managed  by  "  men  of 
small  incomes  bred  either  to  politics  or  the 
legal  profession."  ^ 

The  war  and  navy  departments  need  no  spe- 
cial description  here.  The  former  is  divided  into 
War  and  ten  and  the  latter  into  eight  bureaus. 
navy  'j'j^g  naval  department,  among  many 

duties,  has  charge  of  the  naval  observatory  at 
Washington  and  publishes  the  nautical  almanac. 

The  department  of  the  interior  conducts  a 
vast  and  various  business,  as  is  shown  by  the 

comports  with  the  design  of  the  present  work,  in  Thorpe's 
Government  of  the  People  of  the  United  States,  pp.  183-193. 
^  Schouler,  Hist,  of  the  U.  S.,  vol.  i.  p.  95. 
262 


THE  NATION  AND  THE  STATES 

designations  of  its  eight  bureaus,  which  deal  with 
public  lands,  Indian  affairs,  pensions,  patents, 
education  (chiefly  in  the  way  of  gather-    ^     . 

.      .  J  .  ^         °     ,  Interior 

ing  statistics  and  reporting  upon  school 
affairs),  agriculture,  public  documents,  and  the 
census.  In  1889  the  bureau  of  agriculture  was 
organized  as  a  separate  department.  The  wea- 
ther bureau  forms  a  branch  of  the  department 
of  agriculture. 

The  departments  of  the  postmaster-general 
and  attorney-general  need  no  special  description. 
The  latter  was  organized  in  1870  into    Postmaster- 
the  department  of  justice.    The  attor-    ^l^^tz^"^^ 
ney-general    is    the  president's  legal    general 
adviser,  and  represents  the  United  States  in  all 
law-suits  to  which  the  United  States  is  a  party. 
He   is   aided  by   a  solicitor-general  and  other 
subordinate  officers. 

§  4.  The  Nation  and  the  States. 
We  have  left  our  Federal  Convention  sitting 
a  good  while  at  Philadelphia,  while  we  have 
thus  undertaken  to  give  a  coherent  account  of 
our  national  executive  organization,  which  has 
in  great  part  grown  up  since  1789  with  the 
growth  of  the  nation.  Observe  how  wisely  the 
Constitution  confines  itself  to  a  clear  sketch  of 
fundamentals,  and  leaves  as  much  as  possible  to 
be  developed  by  circumstances.  In  this  feature 
lies  partly  the  flexible  strength,  the  adaptable- 
16^ 


THE  FEDERAL  UNION 

ness,  of  our  Federal  Constitution.  That  strength 
lies  partly  also  in  the  excellent  partition  of 
powers  between  the  federal  government  and  the 
several  states. 

We  have  already  remarked  upon  the  vastness 
of  the  functions  retained  by  the  states.  At  the 
same  time  the  powers  granted  to  Congress  have 
proved  sufficient  to  bind  the  states  together  into 
Difference  ^  union  that  is  morc  than  a  mere  con- 
betweencon-    federation.    From   1776  to  1789  the 

federation  r  t     •       j    n  r    a  • 

and  federal  United  btatcs  weve  a  confederation; 
"^°"  after  \^%()it  was  a  federal  nation.  The 

passage  from  plural  to  singular  was  accom- 
plished, although  it  took  some  people  a  good 
while  to  realize  the  fact.  The  German  language 
has  a  neat  way  of  distinguishing  between  a  loose 
confederation  and  a  federal  union.  It  calls  the 
former  a  Staatenbund  and  the  latter  a  Bundes- 
staat.  So  in  English,  if  we  liked,  we  might  call 
the  confederation  a  Band-of-States  and  the  federal 
union  a  Banded-State.  There  are  two  points 
especially  in  our  Constitution  which  transformed 
our  country  from  a  Band-of-States  into  a  Band- 
ed-State. 

The  first  was  the  creation  of  a  Federal  House 
of  Representatives,  thus  securing  for  Congress 
the  power  "  to  lay  and  collect  taxes, 
granted  to  dutlcs,  imposts,  and  excises,  to  pay 
v^ongress  ^^  dcbts  and  provide  for  the  common 
welfare  of  the  United  States."  Other  powers  are 
264 


THE  NATION  AND  THE  STATES 

naturally  attached  to  this,  —  such  as  the  power 
to  borrow  money  on  the  credit  of  the  United 
States  ;  to  regulate  foreign  and  domestic  com- 
merce ;  to  coin  money  and  fix  the  standard  of 
weights  and  measures  ;  to  provide  for  the  pun- 
ishment of  counterfeiters  ;  to  establish  post- 
offices  and  post-roads ;  to  issue  copyrights  and 
patents  ;  to  "  define  and  punish  felonies  com- 
mitted on  the  high  seas,  and  offences  against  the 
law  of  nations ;  to  declare  war,  grant  letters  of 
marque  and  reprisal,  and  make  rules  concerning 
captures  on  land  and  water ;  "  to  raise  and  sup- 
port an  army  and  navy,  and  to  make  rules  for 
the  regulation  of  the  land  and  naval  forces ;  to 
provide  for  calling  out  the  militia  to  suppress 
insurrections  and  repel  invasions,  and  to  govern 
this  militia  while  actually  employed  in  the  ser- 
vice of  the  United  States.  The  several  states, 
however,  train  their  own  militia  and  appoint  the 
officers.  Congress  may  also  establish  a  uniform 
rule  of  naturalization,  and  uniform  laws  on  the 
subject  of  bankruptcies.  It  also  exercises  exclu- 
sive control  over  the  District  of  Columbia,^  as 
the  seat  of  the  national  government,  and  over 
forts,  magazines,  arsenals,  dockyards,  and  other 
needful  buildings,  which  it  erects  within  the 
several  states  upon  land  purchased  for  such  pur- 
poses with  the  consent  of  the  state  legislature. 
Congress  is  also  empowered  "  to  make  all 
*  Ceded  to  the  United  States  by  Maryland  and  Virginia. 
26^ 


THE  FEDERAL  UNION 

laws  which  shall  be  necessary  and  proper  for 
carrying  into  execution  the  foregoing  powers 
and  all  other  powers  vested  by  this  Constitu- 
The"  Elastic  tion  in  the  government  of  the  United 
Clause"  States,  or  in  any  department  or  office 
thereof."  This  may  be  called  the  Elastic  Clause 
of  the  Constitution  ;  it  has  undergone  a  good 
deal  of  stretching  for  one  purpose  and  another, 
and,  as  we  shall  presently  see,  it  was  a  profound 
disagreement  in  the  interpretation  of  this  clause 
that  after  1789  divided  the  American  people 
into  two  great  political  parties. 

The  national  authority  of  Congress  is  further 

sharply  defined  by  the  express  denial  of  sundry 

powers  to  the  several  states.    These 

rowers  de-         i 

nied  to  the  wc  havc  already  enumerated.^  There 
was  an  especial  reason  for  prohibiting 
the  states  from  issuing  bills  of  credit,  or  making 
anything  but  gold  and  silver  coin  a  tender  in 
payment  of  debts.  During  the  years  1785  and 
1786  a  paper  money  craze  ran  through  the 
country  ;  most  of  the  states  issued  paper  notes, 
and  passed  laws  obliging  their  citizens  to  re- 
ceive them  in  payment  of  debts.  Now  a  paper 
dollar  is  not  money;  it  is  only  the  government's 
Paper  cur-  promisc  to  pay  a  dollar.  As  long  as 
rency  y^^  ^^^  send  it  to  the  treasury  and 

get  a  gold  dollar  in  exchange,  it  is  worth  a  dol- 
lar.   It  is  this  exchangeableness  that  makes  it 
^  See  above,  p.  195. 
266 


THE  NATION  AND  THE  STATES 

worth  a  dollar.  When  government  makes  the 
paper  dollar  note  a  "  legal  tender,"  /'.  e.  when 
it  refuses  to  give  you  the  gold  dollar  and  makes 
you  take  its  note  instead,  the  note  soon  ceases 
to  be  worth  a  dollar.  You  would  rather  have 
the  gold  than  the  note,  for  the  mere  fact  that 
government  refuses  to  give  the  gold  shows  that 
it  is  in  financial  difficulties.  So  the  note's  value 
is  sure  to  fall,  and  if  the  government  is  in  seri- 
ous difficulty,  it  falls  very  far,  and  as  it  falls  it 
takes  more  of  it  to  buy  things.  Prices  go  up. 
There  was  a  time  (1864)  during  our  Civil  War 
when  a  paper  dollar  was  worth  only  forty  cents 
and  a  barrel  of  flour  cost  $23.  But  that  was 
nothing  to  the  year  1780,  when  the  paper  dol- 
lar issued  by  the  Continental  Congress  was 
worth  only  a  mill,  and  flour  was  sold  in  Boston 
for  $1,575  a  barrel  !  When  the  diff^erent  states 
tried  to  make  paper  money,  it  made  confusion 
worse  confounded,  for  the  states  refused  to  take 
each  other's  money,  and  this  helped  to  lower 
its  value.  In  some  states  the  value  of  the  paper 
dollar  fell  in  less  than  a  year  to  twelve  or  fifteen 
cents.  At  such  times  there  is  always  great  de- 
moralization and  suffering,  especially  among  the 
poorer  people ;  and  with  all  the  experience  of 
the  past  to  teach  us,  it  may  now  be  held  to  be 
little  less  than  a  criminal  act  for  a  government, 
under  any  circumstances,  to  make  its  paper 
notes  a  legal  tender.  The  excuse  for  the  Con- 
267 


THE  FEDERAL  UNION 

tinental  Congress  was  that  it  was  not  completely 
a  government  and  seemed  to  have  no  alterna- 
tive, but  there  is  no  doubt  that  the  paper  cur- 
rency damaged  the  country  much  more  than 
the  arms  of  the  enemy  by  land  or  sea.  The 
feeling  was  so  strong  about  it  in  the  Federal 
Convention  that  the  prohibition  came  near  be- 
ing extended  to  the  national  government,  but 
the  question  was  unfortunately  left  undecided.^ 
Some  express  prohibitions  were  laid  upon  the 
national  government.  Duties  may  be  laid  upon 
imports  but  not  upon  exports ;  this  wise  re- 
striction was  a  special  concession  to  South  Car- 
„         ,        olina,  which   feared  the  effect  of  an 

rowers  de-  •' 

niedtoCon-  cxport  duty  upon  rice  and  indigo. 
gress  Duties  and  excises  must  be  uniform 

throughout  the  country,  and  no  commercial 
preference  can  be  shown  to  one  state  over  an- 
other ;  absolute  free  trade  is  the  rule  between 
the  states.  A  census  must  be  taken  every  ten 
years  in  order  to  adjust  the  representation,  and 
no  direct  tax  can  be  imposed  except  according 
to  the  census.  No  money  can  be  drawn  from 
the  treasury  except  "  in  consequence  of  appro- 
priations made  by  law,"  and  accounts  must  be 
regularly  kept  and  published.  The  privilege  of 
the  writ  of  habeas  corpus  cannot  be  suspended 
except  "  when,  in  case  of  rebellion  or  invasion, 

^  See  my  Critical  Period  of  American  History,   chaps, 
iv.,  vi. 

268 


THE  NATION  AND  THE  STATES 

the  public  safety  may  require  it ;  "  and  "  no  bill 
of  attainder,  or  ex  post  facto  law,"  can  be  passed. 
A  bill  of  attainder  is  a  special  legis-  bius  of 
lative  act  by  which  a  person  may  be  attainder 
condemned  to  death,  or  to  outlawry  and  ban- 
ishment, without  the  opportunity  of  defending 
himself  which  he  would  have  in  a  court  of  law. 
"  No  evidence  is  necessarily  adduced  to  support 
it,"  ^  and  in  former  times,  especially  in  the  reign 
of  Henry  VIII.,  it  was  a  formidable  engine  for 
perpetrating  judicial  murders.  Bills  of  attainder 
long  ago  ceased  to  be  employed  in  England, 
and  the  process  was  abolished  by  statute  in 
1870. 

No  title  of  nobility  can  be  granted  by  the 
United  States,  and  no  federal  officer  can  accept 
a  present,  office,  or  title  from  a  foreign  state 
without  the  consent  of  Congress.  "  No  religious 
test  shall  ever  be  required  as  a  qualification  to 
any  office  or  public  trust  under  the  United 
States."  Full  faith  and  credit  must  be  given  in 
each  state  to  the  public  acts  and  records,  and 
to  the  judicial  proceedings  of  every  other  state ; 
and  it  is  left  for  Congress  to  determine  the  man- 
ner in  which  such  acts  and  proceed-  interdtizen- 
ings  shall  be  proved  or  certified.  The  ^^'p 
citizens  of  each  state  are  "  entitled  to  all  privi- 
leges and  immunities  of  citizens  in  the  several 

*  Taswell-Langmead,  English   Constitutional  History,  p. 
385. 

269 


THE  FEDERAL  UNION 

states."  There  is  mutual  extradition  of  crimi- 
nals, and  as  a  concession  to  the  Southern  states 
it  was  provided  that  fugitive  slaves  should  be 
surrendered  to  their  masters.  The  United  States 
guarantees  to  every  state  a  republican  form  of 
government;  it  protects  each  state  against  inva- 
sion ;  and  on  application  from  the  legislature 
of  a  state,  or  from  the  executive  when  the  legis- 
lature cannot  be  convened,  it  lends  a  hand  in 
suppressing  insurrection. 

Amendments  to  the  Constitution  may  at  any 
time  be  proposed  in  pursuance  of  a  two  thirds 
vote  in  both  houses  of  Congress,  or  by  a  con- 
vention called  at  the  request  of  the  legislatures 
of  two  thirds  of  the  states.  The  amendments 
,,  ,    r        are  not  in  force  until  ratified  by  three 

Mode  or  •111 

making  fourths  of  the  States,  either  through 

amen  ents  ^j^^jj.  legislatures  or  through  special 
conventions,  according  to  the  preference  of  Con- 
gress. This  makes  it  difficult  to  change  the 
Constitution,  as  it  ought  to  be ;  but  it  leaves  it 
possible  to  introduce  changes  that  are  very  ob- 
viously desirable.  The  Articles  of  Confedera- 
tion could  not  be  amended  except  by  a  unani- 
mous vote  of  the  states,  and  this  made  their 
amendment  almost  impossible. 

After  assuming  all  debts  contracted  and  en- 
gagements made  by  the  United  States  before 
its  adoption,  the  Constitution  goes  on  to  de- 
clare itself  the  supreme  law  of  the  land.    By  it, 
270 


THE  FEDERAL  JUDICIARY 

and  by  the  laws  and  treaties  made  under  it,  the 
judges  in  every  state  are  bound,  in  spite  of  any- 
thing contrary  in  the  constitution  or  laws  of  any 
state. 

§  5.   The  Federal  Judiciary. 

The  creation  of  a  federal  judiciary  was  the 
second   principal  feature  in   the   Constitution, 
which  transformed   our  country  from   a  loose 
confederation  into  a  federal  nation,  from  a  Band- 
of-States  into  a  Banded-State.   We  have  seen  that 
the  American   people  were   already   somewhat 
familiar  with  the  method  of  testing  the  constitu- 
tionality of  a  law  by  getting  the  matter    ^^^^  ^^^  ^ 
brought  before  the  courts/   I  n  the  case    federal  judi- 
of  a  conflict  between  state  law  and  fed- 
eral law,  the  only  practicable  peaceful  solution  is 
that  which  is  reached  through  a  judicial  decision. 
The  federal  authority  also  needs  the  machinery 
of  courts  in  order  to  enforce  its  own  decrees. 

The  federal  judiciary  consists  of  a  supreme 
court,  circuit  courts,  and  district  courts.^  At  pre- 

1  See  above,  p.  211. 

^  In  order  to  relieve  the  supreme  court  of  the  United  States, 
which  had  come  to  be  overburdened  w^ith  business,  a  new^ 
court,  with  limited  appellate  jurisdiction,  called  the  circuit 
\ourt  of  appeals,  was  organized  in  1892.  It  consists  primarily 
of  nine  appeal  judges,  one  for  each  of  the  nine  circuits.  For 
any  given  circuit  the  supreme  court  justice  of  the  circuit,  the 
appeal  judge  of  the  circuit,  and  the  circuit  judge  constitute  the 
court  of  appeal. 

271 


THE  FEDERAL  UNION 

sent  the  supreme  court  consists  of  a  chief  justice 
and  eight  associate  justices.  It  holds  annual  ses- 
sions in  the  city  of  Washington,  beginning  on 
the  second  Monday  of  October.  Each  of  these 
Federal  "^^^  j^^g^^  is  also  presiding  judge 

courts  and  of  a  circuit  court.  The  area  of  the 
^"  ^  United  States,  not  including  the  terri- 

tories, is  divided  into  nine  circuits,  and  in  each 
circuit  the  presiding  judge  is  assisted  by  special 
circuit  judges.  The  circuits  are  divided  into  dis- 
tricts, seventy-two  in  all,  and  in  each  of  these 
there  is  a  special  district  judge.  The  districts 
never  cross  state  lines.  Sometimes  a  state  is  one 
district,  but  populous  states  with  much  business 
are  divided  into  two  or  even  three  districts. 
"  The  circuit  courts  sit  in  the  several  districts 
of  each  circuit  successively,  and  the  law  requires 
that  each  justice  of  the  supreme  court  shall  sit 
in  each  district  of  his  circuit  at  least  once  every 
two  years."  ^  District  judges  are  not  confined 
to  their  own  districts  ;  they  may  upon  occasion 
exchange  districts  as  ministers  exchange  pulpits. 
A  district  judge  may,  if  need  be,  act  as  a  circuit 
judge,  as  a  major  may  command  a  regiment. 
All  federal  judges  are  appointed  by  the  presi- 
dent, with  the  consent  of  the  Senate,  to  serve 
during  good  behaviour.    Each  district  has  its 

^  See  Wilson,  The  State,  p.  554.    I  have  closely  followed, 
though  with  much  abridgment,  the  excellent  description  of 
our  federal  judiciary,  pp.  555-561. 
272 


THE  FEDERAL  JUDICIARY 

district  attorney^  whose  business  is  to  prosecute 
offenders  against  the  federal  laws  and  to  con- 
duct civil  cases  in  which  the  national    Y)\stnct  at- 
government  is  either  plaintiff  or  de-    tomeys  and 

°        ,  T-'       1         T        •  I  1  •  marshals 

fendant.  rLach  district  has  also  its 
marshal,  who  has  the  same  functions  under 
the  federal  court  as  the  sheriff  under  the  state 
court.  The  procedure  of  the  federal  court  usu- 
ally follows  that  of  the  courts  of  the  state  in 
which  it  is  sitting. 

The  federal  jurisdiction  covers  two  classes  of 
cases:  (i)  those  which  come  before  it  ^^  because 
of  the  nature  of  the  questions  involved;  for  in- 
stance, admiralty  and  maritime  cases,  navigable 
waters  being  within  the  exclusive  jurisdiction 
of  the  federal  authorities,  and  cases  The  federal 
arising  out  of  the  Constitution,  laws,  J""sdicDon 
or  treaties  of  the  United  States  or  out  of  con- 
flicting grants  made  by  different  states  "  ;  (2) 
those  which  come  before  it  "  because  of  the  nature 
of  the  'parties  to  the  suit"  such  as  cases  affecting 
the  ministers  of  foreign  powers  or  suits  between 
citizens  of  different  states. 

The  division  of  jurisdiction  between  the  up- 
per and  lower  federal  courts  is  determined  chiefly 
by  the  size  and  importance  of  the  cases.  In  cases 
where  a  state  or  a  foreign  minister  is  a  party  the 
supreme  court  has  original  jurisdiction,  in  other 
cases  it  has  appellate  jurisdiction,  and  "  any  case 
which  involves  the  interpretation  of  the  Consti- 

273 


THE  FEDERAL  UNION 

tutlon  can  be  taken  to  the  supreme  court,  how- 
ever small  the  sum  in  dispute."  If  a  law  of  any 
state  or  of  the  United  States  is  decided  by  the 
supreme  court  to  be  in  violation  of  the  Con- 
stitution, it  instantly  becomes  void  and  of  no 
effect.  In  this  supreme  exercise  of  jurisdiction, 
our  highest  federal  tribunal  is  unlike  any  other 
tribunal  known  to  history.  The  supreme  court 
is  the  most  original  of  all  American  institutions. 
It  is  peculiarly  American,  and  for  its  exalted 
character  and  priceless  services  it  is  an  institu- 
tion of  which  Americans  may  well  be  proud. 

§  6.  Territorial  Government. 
The  Constitution  provided  for  the  admission 
of  new  states  to  the  Union,  but  it  does  not  al- 
low a  state  to  be  formed  within  another  state.  A 
state  cannot  "  be  formed  by  the  junction  of  two 
or  more  states,  or  parts  of  states,  without  the 
consent  of  the  legislatures  of  the  states  con- 
cerned as  well  as  of  the  Congress."  Shortly  be- 
fore the  making  of  the  Constitution,  the  United 
The  North-  Statcs  had  been  endowed  for  the  first 
west  Terri-  time  with  a  public  domain.  The  ter- 
ritory northwest  of  the  Ohio  River 
had  been  claimed,  on  the  strength  of  old  grants 
and  charters,  by  Massachusetts,  Connecticut, 
New  York,  and  Virginia.  In  1777  Maryland 
refused  to  sign  the  Articles  of  Confederation 
until  these  states  should  agree  to  cede  their 
274 


TERRITORIAL  GOVERNMENT 

claims  to  the  United  States,  and  thus  in  1784 
the  federal  government  came  into  possession  of 
a  magnificent  territory,  out  of  which  five  great 
states  —  Ohio,  Indiana,  Illinois,  Michigan,  and 
Wisconsin  —  have  since  been  made.  While  the 
Federal  Convention  was  sitting  at  Philadelphia, 
the  Continental  Congress  at  New  York  was 
doing  almost  its  last  and  one  of  its  greatest 
pieces  of  work  in  framing  the  Ordinance  of  1787 
for  the  organization  and  government  of  this 
newly  acquired  territory.  The  ordinance  created 
a  territorial  government  with  gover-  -pj^^  qj.jj_ 
nor  and   two-chambered    legislature,    nance  of 

,       -r   •         ^  1787 

courts,  magistrates,  and  militia.   Com- 
plete civil  and  religious  liberty  was  guaranteed, 
negro  slavery  was  prohibited,  and  provision  was 
made  for  free  schools.^ 

In  1803  the  enormous  territory  known 
as  Louisiana,  comprising  everything  (except 
Texas)  between  the  Mississippi  River  and  the 
crest  of  the  Rocky  Mountains,  was  purchased 
from  France.  A  claim  upon  the  Oregon  terri- 
tory was  soon  afterward  made  by  discovery  and 
exploration,  and  finally  settled  in  1846  by  treaty 
with  Great  Britain.  In  1848  by  conquest  and  in 
1853  by  purchase  the  remaining  Pacific  lands 

^  The  manner  in  which  provision  should  be  made  for  these 
schools  had  been  pointed  out  two  years  before  in  the  land- 
ordinance  of  1785,  as  heretofore  explained.  See  above,  p. 
92. 

275 


THE  FEDERAL  UNION 

were  acquired  from  Mexico.  All  of  this  vast 
region  has  been  at  some  time  under  territorial 
government.  As  for  Texas,  on  the  other  hand, 
Other  terri-  it  has  ncver  been  a  territory.  Texas 
toriesand        rcvoltcd  from   Mexico  in   1836  and 

their  govern-  o 

ment  remained  an  independent  state  until 

1845,  when  it  was  admitted  to  the  Union. 
Territorial  government  has  generally  passed 
through  three  stages  :  first,  there  are  governors 
and  judges  appointed  by  the  president ;  then 
as  population  increases,  there  is  added  a  legis- 
lature chosen  by  the  people  and  empowered  to 
make  laws  subject  to  confirmation  by  Congress  ; 
finally,  entire  legislative  independence  is  granted. 
The  territory  is  then  ripe  for  admission  to  the 
Union  as  a  state. 

§  7.  Ratification  and  Amendments. 
Thus  the  work  of  the  Ordinance  of  1787  was 
in  a  certain  sense  supplementary  to  the  work  of 
framing  the  Constitution.  When  the  latter  in- 
strument was  completed,  it  was  provided  that 
"  the  ratifications  of  the  conventions  of  nine 
states  shall  be  sufficient  for  the  establishment 
of  this  Constitution  between  the  states  so  rati- 
fying the  same."  The  Constitution  was  then 
laid  before  the  Continental  Congress,  which 
submitted  it  to  the  states.  In  one  state  after 
another,  conventions  were  held,  and  at  length 
the  Constitution  was  ratified.  There  was  much 
276 


RATIFICATION  AND  AMENDMENTS 

opposition  to  it,  because  it  seemed  to  create  a 
strange  and  untried  form  of  government  which 
might  develop  into  a  tyranny.  There  was  a  fear 
that  the  federal  power  might  crush  out  self-gov- 
ernment in  the  states.  This  dread  was  felt  in 
all  parts  of  the  country.  Besides  this,  there  was 
some  sectional  opposition  between  concessions 
North  and  South,  and  in  Virginia  to  the  South 
there  was  a  party  in  favour  of  a  separate  southern 
confederacy.  But  South  Carolina  and  Georgia 
were  won  over  by  the  concessions  in  the  Con- 
stitution to  slavery,  and  especially  a  provision 
that  the  importation  of  slaves  from  Africa  should 
not  be  prohibited  until  1 808.  By  winning  South 
Carolina  and  Georgia  the  formation  of  a  "  solid 
South  "  was  prevented. 

The  first  states  to  adopt  the  Constitution 
were  Delaware,  Pennsylvania,  New  Jersey, 
Georgia,  and  Connecticut,  with  slight  opposi- 
tion, except  in  Pennsylvania.  Next  came  Mas- 
sachusetts, where  the  convention  was  very 
large,  the  discussion  very  long,  and  Bin  of  Rights 
the  action  in  one  sense  critical.  One  p™p°s^<i 
chief  source  of  dissatisfaction  was  the  absence  of 
a  sufficiently  explicit  Bill  of  Rights,  and  to  meet 
this  difficulty,  Massachusetts  ratified  the  Con- 
stitution, but  proposed  amendments  ;  and  this 
course  was  followed  by  other  states.  Maryland 
and  South  Carolina  came  next,  and  New  Hamp- 
shire made  the  ninth.  Virginia  and  New  York 
■277 


THE  FEDERAL  UNION 

then  ratified  by  very  narrow  majorities  and  after 
prolonged  discussion.  North  CaroHna  did  not 
come  in  until  1789,  and  Rhode  Island  not  until 
1790. 

In  September,  1789,  the  first  ten  amend- 
ments were  proposed  by  Congress,  and  in  De- 
cember, 1 79 1,  they  were  declared  in  force. 
Their  provisions  are  similar  to  those  of  the 
English  Bill  of  Rights,  enacted  in  1689,^  but 
The  first  ten  arc  much  morc  full  and  explicit.  They 
amendments  provide  fot  freedom  of  speech  and 
of  the  press,  the  free  exercise  of  religion,  the 
right  of  the  people  to  assemble  and  petition 
Congress  for  a  redress  of  grievances,  their  right 
to  bear  arms,  and  to  be  secure  against  unrea- 
sonable searches  and  seizures.  The  quartering 
of  soldiers  is  guarded,  general  search-warrants 
are  prohibited,  jury  trial  is  guaranteed,  and  the 
taking  of  private  property  for  public  use  with- 
out due  compensation,  as  well  as  excessive  fines 
and  bail  and  the  infliction  of"  cruel  and  unusual 
punishment"  are  forbidden.  Congress  is  pro- 
hibited from  establishing  any  form  of  religion. 

Finally,  it  is  declared  that  "  the  enumeration 
of  certain  rights  shall  not  be  construed  to  deny 
or  disparage  others  retained  by  the  people,"  and 
that  "  the  powers  not  granted  to  the  United 
States  by  the  Constitution,  nor  prohibited  by  it 

^  See  above,  p.  206.  This  is  further  elucidated  in  Appen- 
dixes B  and  D. 

278 


A  FEW  WORDS  ABOUT  POLITICS 

to  the  states,  are  reserved  to  the  states  respec- 
tively, or  to  the  people." 

§  8.  yf  Few  Words  about  Politics. 

A  chief  source  of  the  opposition  to  the  new 
federal  government  was  the  dread  of  federal  taxa- 
tion. People  who  found  it  hard  to  Federal 
pay  their  town,  county,  and  state  taxes  *3='^"°" 
felt  that  it  would  be  ruinous  to  have  to  pay  still 
another  kind  of  tax.  In  the  mere  fact  of  federal 
taxation,  therefore,  they  were  inclined  to  see 
tyranny.  With  people  in  such  a  mood  it  was 
necessary  to  proceed  cautiously  in  devising  mea- 
sures of  federal  taxation. 

This  was  well  understood  by  our  first  secre- 
tary of  the  treasury,  Alexander  Hamilton,  and 
in  the  course  of  his  administration  of  the  trea- 
sury he  was  once  roughly  reminded  of  it.  The 
two  methods  of  federal  taxation  adopted  at  his 
suggestion  were  duties  on  imports  and  excise 
on  a  few  domestic  products,  such  as  whiskey 
and  tobacco.  The  excise,  being  a  tax  which 
people  could  see  and  feel,  was  very  . 
unpopular,  and  in  1794  the  opposi- 
tion to  it  in  western  Pennsylvania  grew  into 
the  famous  "  Whiskey  Insurrection,"  against 
which  President  Washington  thought  it  prudent 
to  send  an  army  of  16,000  men.  This  formid- 
able display  of  federal  power  suppressed  the 
insurrection  without  bloodshed. 
279 


THE  FEDERAL  UNION 

Nowhere  was  there  any  such  violent  opposi- 
tion to  Hamilton's  scheme  of  custom-house 
duties  on  imported  goods.  People  had  always 
been  familiar  with  such  duties.  In  the  colonial 
times  they  had  been  levied  by  the  British  gov- 
ernment without  callinsr  forth  resist- 

Tariff  ^ 

ance,  until  Charles  Townshend  made 
them  the  vehicle  of  a  dangerous  attack  upon 
American  self-government.^  After  the  Declara- 
tion of  Independence,  custom-house  duties  were 
levied  by  the  state  governments  and  the  pro- 
ceeds were  paid  into  the  treasuries  of  the  several 
states.  Before  1789,  much  trouble  had  arisen 
from  oppressive  tariff-laws  enacted  by  some  of 
the  states  against  others.  By  taking  away  from 
the  states  the  power  of  taxing  imports,  the  new 
Constitution  removed  this  source  of  irritation. 
It  became  possible  to  lighten  the  burden  of 
custom-house  duties,  while  by  turning  the  full 
stream  of  them  into  the  federal  treasury  an 
abundant  national  revenue  was  secured  at  once. 
Thus  this  part  of  Hamilton's  policy  met  with 
general  approval.  The  tariff  has  always  been 
our  favourite  device  for  obtaining  a  national 
revenue.  During  our  Civil  War,  indeed,  the 
national  government  resorted  extensively  to 
direct  taxation,  chiefly  in  the  form  of  revenue 
stamps,  though  it  also  put  a  tax  upon  billiard- 

^  See  my    War  of  Independence,   pp.    58-83  ;  and   my 
History  of  the  United  States  for  Schools,  pp.  192-203. 
280 


A  FEW  WORDS  ABOUT  POLITICS 

tables,  pianos,  gold  watches,  and  all  sorts  of 
things.  But  after  the  return  of  peace  these  un- 
usual taxes  were  one  after  another  discon- 
tinued, and  since  then  our  national  revenue  has 
been  raised,  as  in  Hamilton's  time,  from  duties 
on  imports  and  excise  on  a  few  domestic  pro- 
ducts, chiefly  tobacco  and  distilled  liquors/ 

Hamilton's  measures  as  secretary  of  the 
treasury  embodied  an  entire  system  of  public 
policy,  and  the  opposition  to  them  resulted  in 
the  formation  of  the  two  political  parties  into 
which,  under  one  name  or  another,  the  Ameri- 
can people  have  at  most  times  been    origin  of 


American 


divided.  Hamilton's  opponents,  led  political  par- 
by  Jefferson,  objected  to  his  principal  t'^s 
measures  that  they  assumed  powers  in  the  na- 
tional government  which  were  not  granted  to  it 
by  the  Constitution.  Hamilton  then  fell  back 
upon  the  Elastic  Clause^  of  the  Constitution, 
and  maintained  that  such  powers  were  implied 
in  it.  Jefferson  held  that  this  doctrine  of  "im- 
plied powers  "  stretched  the  Elastic  Clause  too 
far.  He  held  that  the  Elastic  Clause  ought  to 
be  construed  strictly  and  narrowly ;  Hamilton 
held  that  it  ought  to  be  construed  loosely  and 
liberally.  Hence  the  names  "  strict-construc- 
tionist "     and    "  loose-constructionist,"    which 

^  In  1898,  on  the  occasion  of  the  Spanish  war,  taxation 
by  stamps  was  renewed. 

^  Article  I.,  section  viii.,  clause  18  ;  see  above,  p.  266. 
281 


THE  FEDERAL  UNION 

mark  perhaps  the  most  profound  and  abiding 
antagonism  in  the  history  of  American  politics. 

Practically  all  will  admit  that  the  Elastic 
Clause,  if  construed  strictly,  ought  not  to  be 
construed  too  narrowly  ;  and,  if  construed  liber- 
ally, ought  not  to  be  construed  too  loosely. 
Neither  party  has  been  consistent  in  applying 
its  principles,  but  in  the  main  we  can  call 
Hamilton  the  founder  of  the  Federalist  party, 
which  has  had  for  its  successors  the  National 
Republicans  of  1828,  the  Whigs  of  1833  to 
1852,  and  the  Republicans  of  1854  to  the  pre- 
sent time ;  while  we  can  call  Jefferson  the 
founder  of  the  party  which  called  itself  Repub- 
lican from  about  1792  to  about  1828,  and  since 
then  has  been  known  as  the  Democratic  party. 
This  is  rather  a  rough  description  in  view  of 
the  real  complication  of  the  historical  facts,  but 
it  is  an  approximation  to  the  truth. 

It  is  not  my  purpose  here  to  give  a  sketch 
of  the  history  of  American  parties.  Such  a 
sketch,  if  given  in  due  relative  proportion, 
would  double  the  size  of  this  little  book,  of 
Tariff,  Inter-  which  thc  main  purpose  is  to  treat  of 
nai  Improve-    ciy}}  govcmment  in  the  United  States 

ments,  and  •    \  r  •  •    •  t>  • 

National         With  reference  to  its  origins.    But  it 
^"  may  here  be  said  in  general  that  the 

practical  questions  which  have  divided  the  two 
great   parties   have    been   concerned   with    the 
powers  of  the  national  government  as  to  (i)  the 
282 


A  FEW  WORDS  ABOUT  POLITICS 

Tariff;  (2)  the  making  of  roads,  improving 
rivers  and  harbours,  etc.,  under  the  general 
head  of  Internal  Improvements ;  and  (3)  the 
establishment  of  a  National  Bank^  with  the  na- 
tional government  as  partner  holding  shares  in 
it  and  taking  a  leading  part  in  the  direction  of 
its  affairs.  On  the  question  of  such  a  national 
bank  the  Democratic  party  achieved  a  complete 
and  decisive  victory  under  President  Tyler. 
On  the  question  of  internal  improvements  the 
opposite  party  still  holds  the  ground,  but  most 
of  its  details  have  been  settled  by  the  great  de- 
velopment of  the  powers  of  private  enterprise 
during  the  past  sixty  years,  and  it  is  not  at 
present  a  "  burning  question."  The  question  of 
the  tariff,  however,  remains  to-day  as  a  *'  burn- 
ing question,"  but  it  is  no  longer  argued  on 
grounds  of  constitutional  law,  but  on  grounds 
of  political  economy.  Hamilton's  construction 
of  the  Elastic  Clause  has  to  this  extent  pre- 
vailed, and  mainly  for  the  reason  that  a  liberal 
construction  of  that  clause  was  needed  in  order 
to  give  the  national  government  enough  power 
to  restrict  the  spread  of  slavery  and  suppress 
the  great  rebellion  of  which  slavery  was  the  ex- 
citing cause. 

Another  political  question,  more  important, 

if  possible,  than  that  of  the  Tariff,  is  to-day  the 

question  of  the  reform  of  the  Civil  Service  ;  but 

it  is  not  avowedly  made  a  party  question.  Twenty 

283 


THE  FEDERAL  UNION 

years  ago  both  parties  laughed  at  it ;  now  both 
try  to  treat  it  with  a  show  of  respect  and  to 
Civil  service  render  unto  it  Hp-homage  ;  and  the 
reform  control    of  the    immediate    pohtical 

future  probably  lies  with  the  party  which  treats 
it  most  seriously.  It  is  a  question  that  was  not 
distinctly  foreseen  in  the  days  of  Hamilton  and 
Jefferson,  when  the  Constitution  was  made  and 
adopted ;  otherwise,  one  is  inclined  to  believe, 
the  framers  of  the  Constitution  would  have  had 
something  to  say  about  it.  The  question  as  to 
the  Civil  Service  arises  from  the  fact  that  the 
president  has  the  power  of  appointing  a  vast 
number  of  petty  officials,  chiefly  postmasters 
and  officials  concerned  with  the  collection  of 
the  federal  revenue.  Such  officials  have  pro- 
perly nothing  to  do  with  politics ;  they  are  sim- 
ply the  agents  or  clerks  or  servants  of  the 
national  government  in  conducting  its  business  ; 
and  if  the  business  of  the  national  government 
is  to  be  managed  on  such  ordinary  principles 
of  prudence  as  prevail  in  the  management  of 
private  business,  such  servants  ought  to  be 
selected  for  personal  merit  and  retained  for  life 
or  during  good  behaviour.  It  did  not  occur  to 
our  earlier  presidents  to  regard  the  management 
of  the  public  business  in  any  other  light  than 
this. 

But  as  early  as  the  beginning  of  the  present 
century  a  vicious   system  was  growing  up   in 
284 


A  FEW  WORDS  ABOUT  POLITICS 

New  York  and  Pennsylvania.  In  those  states 
the  appointive  offices  came  to  be  used  as 
bribes  or  as  rewards  for  partisan  services.  By- 
securing  votes  for  a  successful  candi-       . .     ,  , 

,  °  .,,.,.,.  ,  Origin  of  the 

date,  a  man  with  little  in  his  pocket  "  spoils  sys- 
and  nothing  in  particular  to  do  could  ^^"^ 
obtain  some  office  with  a  comfortable  salary.  It 
would  be  given  him  as  a  reward,  and  some  other 
man,  perhaps  more  competent  than  himself, 
would  have  to  be  turned  out  in  order  to  make 
room  for  him.  A  more  effective  method  of 
driving  good  citizens  "  out  of  politics  "  could 
hardly  be  devised.  It  called  to  the  front  a  large 
class  of  men  of  coarse  moral  fibre  who  greatly 
preferred  the  excitement  of  speculating  in  poli- 
tics to  earning  an  honest  living  by  some  ordi- 
nary humdrum  business.  The  civil  service  of 
these  states  was  seriously  damaged  in  quality, 
politics  degenerated  into  a  wild  scramble  for 
offices,  salaries  were  paid  to  men  who  did  little 
or  no  public  service  in  return,  and  thus  the  line 
which  separates  taxation  from  robbery  was  often 
crossed. 

About  the  same  time  there  grew  up  an  idea 
that  there  is  something  especially  democratic, 
and  therefore  meritorious,  about  "  rotation  in 
office."  Government  offices  were  regarded  as 
plums  at  which  every  one  ought  to  "Rotation 
be  allowed  a  chance  to  take  a  bite,  '"office" 
The  way  was  prepared  in  1820  by  W.  H. 
285 


THE  FEDERAL  UNION 

Crawford,  of  Georgia,  who  succeeded  in  getting 
the  law  enacted  that  Hmits  the  tenure  of  office 
for  postmasters,  revenue  collectors,  and  other 
servants  of  the  federal  government  to  four 
years.  The  importance  of  this  measure  was  not 
understood,  and  it  excited  very  little  discussion 
at  the  time.  The  next  presidential  election 
which  resulted  in  a  change  of  party  was  that 
of  Jackson  in  1828,  and  then  the  methods  of 
New  York  and  Pennsylvania  were  applied  on 
a  national  scale.  Jackson  cherished  the  absurd 
belief  that  the  administration  of  his  predecessor 
Adams  had  been  corrupt,  and  he  turned  men 
out  of  office  with  a  keen  zest.  During  the  forty 
years  between  Washington's  first  inauguration 
and  Jackson's  the  total  number  of  removals  from 
office  was  seventy-four,  and  out  of  this  number 
five  were  defaulters.  During  the  first  year  of 
Jackson's  administration  the  number  of  changes 
_,         .,      made   in  the  civil  service  was  about 

The  "spoils  101 

system"  2000.  Such  was  the  abrupt  maugu- 
madenationai  ^^^j^^^  ^^^^  ^  national  scde  of  the  so- 
called  "  spoils  system."  The  phrase  originated 
with  W.  L.  Marcy,  of  New  York,  who  in  a 
speech  in  the  Senate  in  1 83 1  declared  that  "  to 
the  victors  belong  the  spoils."  The  man  who 
said  this  of  course  did  not  realize  that  he  was 
making  one  of  the  most  shameful  remarks  re- 
corded in  history.    There  was,  however,  much 

^  Sumner's  Jackson,  p.  147. 
286 


A  FEW  WORDS  ABOUT  POLITICS 

aptness  in  his  phrase,  inasmuch  as  it  was  a  con- 
fession that  the  business  of  American  poHtics 
was  about  to  be  conducted  on  principles  fit 
only  for  the  warfare  of  barbarians. 

In  the  canvass  of  1840  the  Whigs  promised 
to  reform  the  civil  service,  and  the  promise 
brought  them  many  Democratic  votes ;  but 
after  they  had  won  the  election,  they  followed 
Jackson's  example.  The  Democrats  followed 
in  the  same  way  in  1845,  and  from  that  time 
down  to  1885  it  was  customary  at  each  change 
of  party  to  make  a  "  clean  sweep "  of  the 
offices.  Soon  after  the  Civil  War  the  evils  of 
the  system  began  to  attract  serious  attention  on 
the  part  of  thoughtful  people.  The  "  spoils 
system  "  has  helped  to  sustain  all  manner  of 
abominations,  from  grasping  monopolies  and 
civic  jobbery  down  to  political  rum-shops.  The 
virus  runs  through  everything,  and  the  natural 
tendency  of  the  evil  is  to  grow  with  the  growth 
of  the  country. 

In  1883  Congress  passed  the  Civil  Service 
Act,  allowing  the  president  to  select  a  board  of 
examiners  on  whose  recommendation  appoint- 
ments are  made.   Candidates  for  office 

.   .  The  Civil 

are  subjected  to  an  easy  competitive    service  Act 
examination.   The  system  has  worked    °  '    ^ 
well  in  other  countries,  and  under  Presidents 
Arthur  and  Cleveland  it  was  applied  to  a  con- 
siderable part  of  the  civil  service.    It  has  also 
287 


THE  FEDERAL  UNION 

been  adopted  In  some  states  and  cities.  The 
opponents  of  reform  object  to  the  examination 
that  it  is  not  always  intimately  connected  with 
the  work  of  the  office,^  but,  even  if  this  were  so, 
the  merit  of  the  system  lies  in  its  removal  of 
the  offices  from  the  category  of  things  known 
as  "  patronage."  It  relieves  the  president  of 
much  needless  work  and  wearisome  importunity. 
The  president  and  the  heads  of  departments 
appoint  (in  many  cases,  through  subordinates) 
about  115,000  officials.  It  is  therefore  impos- 
sible to  know  much  about  their  character  or 
competency.  It  becomes  necessary  to  act  by 
advice,  and  the  advice  of  an  examining  board  is 
sure  to  be  much  better  than  the  advice  of  po- 
litical schemers  intent  upon  getting  a  salaried 
office  for  their  needy  friends.  The  examination 
system  has  made  a  fair  beginning  and  will 
doubtless  be  gradually  improved  and  made 
more  stringent.  Something  too  has  been  done 
toward  stopping  two  old  abuses  attendant  upon 
political  canvasses,  —  (i)  forcing  government 
clerks,  under  penalty  of  losing  their  places,  to 

1  The  objection  that  the  examination  questions  are  irrele- 
vant to  the  work  of  the  office  is  often  made  the  occasion  of 
gross  exaggeration.  I  have  given,  in  Appendix  I,  an  average 
sample  of  the  examination  papers  used  in  the  customs  service. 
It  is  taken  from  United  States  Civil  Service  Commission. 
Instructions  to  Applicants,  etc.  Form  117,  October,  1900. 
Washington,  Government  Printing  Office,  1900. 
288 


A  FEW  WORDS  ABOUT  POLITICS 

contribute  part  of  their  salaries  for  election  pur- 
poses ;  (2)  allowing  government  clerks  to  neg- 
lect their  work  in  order  to  take  an  active  part 
in  the  canvass.  Before  the  reform  of  the  civil 
service  can  be  completed,  however,  it  will  be 
necessary  to  repeal  Crawford's  act  of  1820  and 
make  the  tenure  of  postmasters  and  revenue 
collectors  as  secure  as  that  of  the  chief  justice 
of  the  United  States. 

Another  political  reform  which  promises  ex- 
cellent results  is  the  adoption  by  many  states 
of  some  form  of  the  Australian  ballot-system, 
for  the  purpose  of  checking  intimi-  Tj^e^ustra. 
dation  and  bribery  at  elections.  The  Hanbaiiot- 
ballots  are  printed  by  the  state,  and  ^^^^"^ 
contain  the  names  of  all  the  candidates  of  all 
the  parties.  Against  the  name  of  each  candi- 
date the  party  to  which  he  belongs  is  desig- 
nated, and  against  each  name  there  is  a  small 
vacant  space  to  be  filled  with  a  cross.  At  the 
polling-place  the  ballots  are  kept  in  an  in- 
closure  behind  a  railing,  and  no  ballot  can  be 
brought  outside  under  penalty  of  fine  or  im- 
prisonment.^ One  ballot  is  nailed  against  the 
wall  outside  the  railing,  so  that  it  may  be  read 
at  leisure.   The  space  behind  the  railing  is  di- 

^  This  is  a  brief  description  of  the  system  lately  adopted 
in  Massachusetts.    The  penalty  here  mentioned  is  a  fine  not 
exceeding  a  thousand  dollars,  or  imprisonment  not  exceeding 
one  year,  or  both  such  fine  and  such  imprisonment. 
289 


THE  FEDERAL  UNION 

vided  into  separate  booths  quite  screened  from 
each  other.  Each  booth  is  provided  with  a  pen- 
cil and  a  convenient  shelf  on  which  to  write. 
The  voter  goes  behind  the  railing,  takes  the 
ballot  which  is  handed  him,  carries  it  into  one 
of  the  booths,  and  marks  a  cross  against  the 
names  of  the  candidates  for  whom  he  votes. 
He  then  puts  his  ballot  into  the  box,  and  his 
name  is  checked  off  on  the  register  of  voters 
of  the  precinct.  This  system  is  very  simple,  it 
enables  a  vote  to  be  given  in  absolute  secrecy, 
and  it  keeps  "  heelers  "  away  from  the  polls. 
It   is   favourable   to   independence   in  voting,^ 

^  It  is  especially  favourable  to  independence  in  voting,  if 
the  lists  of  the  candidates  are  placed  in  a  single  column,  with- 
out reference  to  party  (each  name,  of  course,  having  the 
proper  party  designation,  "Rep.,"  "Dem.,"  "Prohib.," 
etc.,  attached  to  it).  In  such  case  it  must  necessarily  take 
the  voter  some  litde  time  to  find  and  mark  each  name  for 
which  he  wishes  to  vote.  If,  however,  the  names  of  the 
candidates  are  arranged  according  to  their  party,  all  the 
Republicans  in  one  list,  all  the  Democrats  in  another,  etc., 
this  arrangement  is  much  less  favourable  to  independence 
in  vodng  and  much  less  efficient  as  a  check  upon  bribery; 
because  the  man  who  votes  a  straight  party  ticket  will  make 
all  his  marks  in  a  very  short  time,  while  the  *♦  scratcher,"  or 
independent  voter,  will  consume  much  more  time  in  select- 
ing his  names.  Thus  people  interested  in  seeing  whether  a 
man  is  voting  the  straight  party  ticket  or  not  can  form  an 
opinion  from  the  length  of  time  he  spends  in  the  booth. 
It  is,  therefore,  important  that  the  names  of  all  candidates 
should  be  printed  in  a  single  column. 
190 


A  FEW  WORDS  ABOUT  POLITICS 

and  It  is  unfavourable  to  bribery,  because  un- 
less the  briber  can  follow  his  man  to  the  polls 
and  see  how  he  votes,  he  cannot  be  sure  that 
his  bribe  is  effective.  To  make  the  precautions 
against  bribery  complete  it  will  doubtless  be 
necessary  to  add  to  the  secret  ballot  the  Eng- 
lish system  of  accounting  for  election  expenses. 
All  the  funds  used  in  an  election  must  pass 
through  the  hands  of  a  small  local  committee, 
vouchers  must  be  received  for  every  penny  that 
is  expended,  and  after  the  election  an  itemized 
account  must  be  made  out  and  its  accuracy  at- 
tested under  oath  before  a  notary  public.  This 
system  of  accounting  has  put  an  end  to  bribery 
in  England.^ 

Complaints  of  bribery  and  corruption  have 
attracted  especial  attention  in  the  United  States 
during  the  past  few  years,  and  it  is  highly 
creditable  to  the  good  sense  of  the  people  that 
measures  of  prevention  have  been  so  promptly 
adopted  by  so  many  states.  With  an  inde- 
pendent and  uncorrupted  ballot,  and  the  civil 
service  taken  "  out  of  politics,"  all  other  re- 
forms will  become  far  more  easily  accomplished. 
These  ends  will  presently  be  attained.  Popular 
government  makes  many  mistakes,  and  some- 
times it  is  slow  in  finding  them  out;  but  when 

^  An  important  step  in  this  direction  has  been  taken  in 
the  New  York  Corrupt  Practices  Act  of  April,  1890.  See 
Appendix  J. 

291 


THE  FEDERAL  UNION 

once  it  has  discovered  them  it  has  a  way  of 
correcting  them.  It  is  the  best  kind  of  govern- 
ment in  the  world,  the  most  wisely  conser- 
vative, the  most  steadily  progressive,  and  the 
most  likely  to  endure. 


BIBLIOGRAPHICAL  NOTES 

It  is  designed  in  the  bibliographical  notes  to  indi- 
cate some  authorities  to  which  reference  may  be  made 
for  greater  detail  than  is  possible  in  an  elementary 
work  like  the  present.  It  is  believed  that  the  notes 
will  prove  a  help  to  teacher  and  pupil  in  special  in- 
vestigations, and  to  the  reader  who  may  wish  to  make 
selections  from  excellent  sources  for  purposes  of  self- 
culture.  It  is  hardly  necessary  to  add  that  it  is  some- 
times worth  much  to  the  student  to  know  where 
valuable  information  may  be  obtained,  even  when  it  is 
not  practicable  to  make  immediate  use  of  it.  .  .  . 

Chapter  I.  Taxation  and  Government.  — As 
to  the  causes  of  the  American  Revolution,  see  my 
War  of  Independence^  Boston,  1889  ;  and  as  to  the 
weakness  of  the  government  of  the  United  States  be- 
fore 1789,  see  my  Critical  Period  of  American  History^ 
Boston,  1888.  As  to  the  causes  of  the  French  Revo- 
lution, see  Paul  Lacombe,  The  Growth  of  a  People^ 
N.  Y.,  1883,  and  the  third  volume  of  Kitchin's  History 
of  France,  hondon,  1887;  also  Morse  Stephens,  The 
French  Revolution,  vol.  i.,  N.  Y.,  1887  ;  Taine,  The 
Ancient  R'egwie,  N.  Y.,  1 8 76,  and  The  Revolution,  2 
vols.,  N.  Y.  1880.  The  student  may  read  with  plea- 
sure and  profit  Dickens's  Tale  of  Two  Cities.  For  the 
student  familiar  with  French,  an  excellent  book  is 
Albert  Babeau,  Le  Village  sous  Vancien  Regime,  Paris, 


BIBLIOGRAPHICAL  NOTES 

1879  ;  see  also  Tocqueville,  Vancien  Regime  et  la 
Revolution^  7th  ed.,  Paris,  1866.  There  is  a  good 
sketch  of  the  causes  of  the  French  Revolution  in  the 
fifth  volume  of  Lecky's  History  of  England  in  the 
Eighteenth  Century^  N.  Y.,  1887  ;  ^ee  also  Buckle's 
History  of  Civilization,  chaps,  xii.-xiv.  There  is  no 
better  commentary  on  my  first  chapter  than  the  lurid 
history  of  France  in  the  eighteenth  century.  The 
strong  contrast  to  English  and  American  history  shows 
us  most  instructively  what  we  have  thus  far  escaped. 

Chapter  II.  §1.  The  New  England  Town- 
ship. There  is  a  good  account  in  Martin's  Text-Book 
on  Civil  Government  in  the  United  States.  N.  Y.  and 
Chicago,  1875. 

§  2.  Origin  of  the  Township.  Here  the  Johns 
Hopkins  University  Studies  in  Historical  and  Political 
Science,  edited  by  Dr.  Herbert  Adams,  are  of  great 
value.  Note  especially  series  I.  no.  i.,  E.  A.  Free- 
man, Introduction  to  American  Institutional  History  ;  I., 
ii.,  iv.,  viii.,  ix.,  x.,  H.  B.Adams,  The  Germanic  Origin 
of  New  England  Towns^  Saxon  Tithing-Men  in  Amer- 
ica., Normayi  Constables  in  Afuerica^  Village  Communities 
of  Cape  Ann  and  Salem ;  II.,  x.,  Edward  Channing, 
Town  and  County  Government  in  the  English  Colonies  of 
North  America  ;  IV.,  xi.— xii.,  Melville  Egleston,  The 
Land  System  of  the  New  England  Colonies ;  VII.,  vii.- 
ix.,  C.  M.  Andrews,  The  River  Towns  of  Connecticut. 

See  also  Howard's  Local  Constitutional  History  of  the 
United  States^vol.  i.,  "Township,  Hundred,  and  Shire," 
Baltimore,  1889,  a  work  of  extraordinary  merit. 

The  great  book  on  local  self-government  in  Eng- 
land is  Toulmin  Smith's  The  Parish^  2d  ed.,  Lon- 
294 


I 


BIBLIOGRAPHICAL  NOTES 

don,  1859.  For  the  ancient  history  of  the  township, 
see  Gomme's  Primitive  Folk-Moots^  London,  1880; 
Gomme's  Village  Community.,  London,  1890  ;  See- 
bohm's  English  Village  Community.,  London,  1883  ; 
Nasse's  Agricultural  Community  of  the  Middle  Ages., 
London,  1872  ;  Laveleye's  Primitive  Property.,  London, 
1878  ;  Phear's  Aryan  Village  in  India  and  Ceylon.,  Lon- 
don, 1880  ;  Hearn  (of  the  University  of  Melbourne, 
Australia),  The  Aryan  Household.,  London  and  Mel- 
bourne, 1879  ;  and  the  following  works  of  Sir  Henry 
Maine:  Ancient  Law.,  London,  1861  ;  Village  Communi- 
ties in  the  East  and  West.,  London,  1 8  7 1  ;  Early  History 
of  Institutions.,  London,  1875  ;  Early  Law  and  Custom., 
London,  1883.  All  of  Maine's  works  are  republished 
in  New  York.  See  also  my  American  Political  Ideas., 
N.  Y.,  1885. 

Gomme's  Literature  of  Local  Institutions.,  London, 
1886,  contains  an  extensive  bibliography  of  the  sub- 
ject, with  valuable  critical  notes  and  comments. 

Chapter  III.  §  i.  The  County  in  its  Begin- 
nings. This  subject  is  treated  in  connection  with  the 
township  in  several  of  the  books  above  mentioned. 
See  especially  Howard,  Local  Const.  Hist. 

§  2.  The  Modern  County  in  Massachusetts. 
There  is  a  good  account  in  Martin's  Text-Book  above 
mentioned. 

§  3.  The  Old  Virginia  County.  The  best 
account  is  in  J.  H.  U.  Studies,  III.,  ii.,  iii.,  Edward 
Ingle,  Virginia  Local  Institutions.  See  also  my  Old 
Virginia  and  Her  Neighbours^  ii.  41—51. 

Chapter  IV.  §  i.  Various  Local  Systems. — 
295 


BIBLIOGRAPHICAL  NOTES 

J.  H.  U.  Studies,  I.,  vi.,  Edward  Ingle,  Parish  Insti- 
tutions of  Maryland;  I.,  vii.,  John  Johnson,  Old 
Maryland  Manors  ;  I.,  xii.,  B.  J.  Ramage,  Local  Gov- 
ernment and  Free  Schools  in  South  Carolina  ;  III.,  v.— vii., 
L.  W.  Wilhelm,  Local  Institutions  of  Maryland ;  IV., 
i.,  Irving  Eking,  Dutch  Village  Communities  on  the 
Hudson  River. 

§  2.  Settlement  of  the  Public  Domain.  — 
J.  H.  U.  Studies,  III.,  i.,  H.  B.  Adams,  Maryland's 
Influence  upon  Land  Cessions  to  the  United  States  ;  IV., 
vii.— ix.,  Shoshuke  Sato,  Histojy  of  the  Land  Question  in 
the  United  States.' 

§  3.  The  Representative  Township-County 
System.  —  J.  H.  U.  Studies,  I.,  iii.,  Albert  Shaw, 
Local  Government  in  Illinois;  I.,  v.,  Edward  Bemis, 
Local  Government  in  Michigan  and  the  Northwest ;  II., 
vii.,  Jesse  Macy,  Institutional  Beginnings  in  a  Western 
State  (Iowa).  For  further  illustration  of  one  set  of 
institutions  supervening  upon  another,  see  also  V., 
v.,  vi.,  J.  G.  Bourinot,  Local  Government  in  Canada  ; 
VIII.,  iii.,  D.  E.  Spencer,  Local  Government  in  Wis- 
consin. 

Chapter  V.  §  i.  Direct  and  Indirect  Gov- 
ernment.—  The  transition  from  direct  to  indirect 
government,  as  illustrated  in  the  gradual  development 
of  a  township  into  a  city,  may  be  profitably  studied 
in  Quincy's  Municipal  History  of  Boston^  Boston,  1852  j 
and  in  Winsor's  Memorial  History  of  Boston^  iii.  189— 
302,  Boston,  1881. 

§  2.  Origin  of  English  Boroughs  and  Cities. 
—  See  Loftie's  History  of  London^  2  vols.,  London, 
1883  ;  Toulmin  Smith's  English  Gilds^  with  Introduc- 
296 


BIBLIOGRAPHICAL  NOTES 

tion  by  Lujo  Brentano,  London,  1870 ;  and  the  his- 
tories of  the  English  Constitution,  especially  those  of 
Gneist,  Stubbs,  Taswell-Langmead,  and  Hannis  Tay- 
lor. 

§  3.  Government  of  Cities  in  the  United 
States.  —  J.  H.  U.  Studies,  III.,  xi.,  xii.,  J.  A. 
Porter,  The  City  of  Washington ;  IV.,  iv.,  W.  P.  Hol- 
comb,  Pennsylvania  Boroughs;  IV.,  x.,  C.  H.  Lever- 
more,  Town  and  City  Government  of  New  Haven  ;  V., 
i.,  ii.,  Allinson  and  Penrose,  City  Government  of  Phila- 
delphia ;  v.,  iii.,  J.  M.  Bugbee,  The  City  Government 
of  Boston;  V.,  iv.,  M.  S.  Snow,  The  City  Government 
of  St.  Louis  ;  VII.,  ii.,  iii.,  B.  Moses,  Establishment  of 
Afunicipal  Government  in  San  Francisco  ;  VII.,  iv.,  W^. 
W.  Howe,  Afunicipal  History  of  New  Orleans ;  also 
Supplementary  Notes^  No.  4,  Seth  Low,  The  Problem 
of  City  Government  (compare  No.  i,  Albert  Shaw, 
Municipal  Government  in  England^  See,  also,  the 
supplementary  volumes  published  at  Baltimore,  — 
Levermore's  Republic  of  New  Haven^  1886,  Allinson 
and  Penrose's  Philadelphia^  i68i-i88y  :  a  History  of 
Municipal  Development^  1887.  Also  Eaton's  Govern- 
ment of  Municipalities^  New  York,  1899  ;  Wilcox's 
Study  of  City  Government^  New  York,  1897  ;  and 
Chapman's  Practical  Agitation^  New  York,  1900. 

Chapter  VI.  The  State.  —  For  the  founding  of 
the  several  colonies,  their  charters,  etc.,  the  student 
may  profitably  consult  the  learned  monographs  in 
Winsor's  Narrative  and  Critical  History  of  America^  8 
vols.,  Boston,  1886—89.  ^  popular  account,  quite 
full  in  details,  is  given  in  Lodge's  Short  History  of  the 
English  Colonies  in  America^  N.  Y.,  1 881.  There  is  a 
297 


BIBLIOGRAPHICAL  NOTES 

fairly  good  account  of  the  revision  and  transformation 
of  the  colonial  governments  in  Bancroft's  History  of 
the  United  States^  final  edition,  N.  Y.,  1886,  v.  iii- 

125. 

The  series  of  American  Commonwealths,  edited 
by  H.  E.  Scudder,  and  published  by  Houghton,  Mifflin 
&  Co.,  will  be  found  helpful.  The  following  have 
been  published  :  Johnston,  Connecticut :  a  Study  of  a 
Commonwealth-Democracy^  1887  ;  Roberts,  New  York: 
the  Planting  and  Growth  of  the  Empire  State^  1  vols., 
1887;  Vtxo-^n^^  Maryland :  the  History  of  a  Palatinate^ 
2d  ed.,  1884  ;  Cooke,  Virginia :  a  History  of  the  People^ 
1883  ;  Shaler,  Kentucky :  a  Pioneer  Commonwealth^ 
1884;  King,  Ohio:  First  Fruits  of  the  Ordinance  of 
i^Sy^  1888  ;  Dunn,  Indiana  :  a  Redemption  from  Slav- 
ery^ 1888;  Cooley,  Michigan:  a  History  of  Govern- 
ments^ 1885;  Carr,  Missouri:  a  Bone  of  Contention^ 
1888  ;  Spring,  Kansas :  the  Prelude  to  the  War  for  the 
TJnion^  1885  ;  Royce,  California :  a  Study  of  American 
Character^  1886;  Barrows,  Oregon:  the  Struggle  for 
Possession^  1883;  Robinson,  Vermont:  a  Study  of  Inde- 
pendence^ 1892. 

Chapter  VII.  Written  Constitutions. — Very 
little  has  been  written  or  published  with  reference  to 
the  history  of  the  development  of  the  idea  of  a  written 
constitution.  The  student  will  find  some  suggestive 
hints  in  Hannis  Taylor's  Origin  and  Growth  of  the 
English  Constitution^  vol.  i.,  Boston,  1889.  See  Henry 
Hitchcock's  American  State  Constitutions  ;  a  Study  of 
their  Growth^  N.  Y.,  1887,  a  learned  and  valuable 
essay.  See  also  J.  H.  U.  Studies,  I.,  xi.,  Alexander 
Johnston,  The  Genesis  of  a  New  England  State  {Con- 
ic)^ 


BIBLIOGRAPHICAL  NOTES 

necticut);  III.,  ix.,  x.,  Horace  Davis,  American  Consti- 
tutions;  also  Preston's  Docu?nents  Illustrative  of  Ameri- 
can History^  i6o6-i86j^  N.  Y.,  1886;  Stubbs,  Select 
Charters  and  other  Illustrations  of  English  Constitutional 
History^  Oxford,  1870  ;  Gardiner's  Constitutional  Doc-' 
uments  of  the  Puritan  Revolution^  Oxford,  1888. 

Chapter  VIIL  The  Federal  Union.  —  For 
the  origin  of  our  Federal  Constitution,  see  Bancroft's 
History  of  the*  United  States^  final  edition,  vol.  vi., 
N.  Y.,  1886;  Curtis's  History  of  the  Constitution^  2 
vols.,  N.  Y,,  1 86 1,  new  edition,  vol.  i.,  1889  ;  and 
my  Critical  Period  of  A7nerican  History^  Boston,  1888, 
with  copious  references  in  the  bibliographical  note  at 
the  end.  Once  more  we  may  refer  advantageously  to 
J.  H.  U.  Studies,  II.,  v.,  vi.,  H.  C.  Adams,  Taxation 
in  the  United  States^  1 789-18 16  ;  VIIL,  i.,  ii.,  A.  W. 
Small,  The  Beginnings  of  American  Nationality.  See 
also  Jameson's  Essays  in  the  Constitutional  History  of 
the  United  States  in  the  Formative  Period^  lyy^—iySg^ 
Boston,  1889,  a  very  valuable  book. 

On  the  progress  toward  union  during  the  colonial 
period,  see  especially  Frothingham's  Rise  of  the  Re- 
public of  the  United  States^  Boston^  iS J 2-,  also  Scott's 
Development  of  Constitutional  Liberty  in  the  English 
Colonies  of  America^  N.  Y.,  1882. 

By  far  the  ablest  and  most  thorough  book  on  the 
government  of  the  United  States  that  has  ever  been 
published  is  Bryce's  American  Commonwealth^  2  vols., 
London  and  N.  Y.,  1888.  No  American  citizen's 
education  is  properly  completed  until  he  has  read  the 
whole  of  it  carefully.  In  connection  therewith,  the 
work  of  Tocqueville,  Democracy  in  America.^  2  vols., 
299 


BIBLIOGRAPHICAL  NOTES 

6th  ed.,  Boston,  1876,  is  interesting.  The  Scotch- 
man describes  and  discusses  the  American  common- 
wealth of  to-day,  the  Frenchman  that  of  sixty  years 
ago.  There  is  an  instructive  difference  in  the  methods 
of  the  two  writers,  Tocqueville  being  inclined  to 
draw  deductions  from  ingenious  generalizations  and 
to  explain  as  natural  results  of  democracy  sundry 
American  characteristics  that  require  a  different  ex- 
planation. His  great  work  is  admirably  reviewed  and 
criticised  by  Bryce,  in  the  J.  H.  U.  Studies,  V.,  ix., 
The  Predictions  of  Hamilton  and  De  Tocqueville. 

The  following  manuals  may  be  recommended  : 
Thorpe,  The  Government  of  the  People  of  the  United 
States.,  Phila.,  1889;  Martin's  Text-Book  on  Civil 
Government  in  the  United  States.,  N.  Y.  and  Chicago, 
1875  (written  with  special  reference  to  Massachu- 
setts) ;  Northam'a  Manual  of  Civil  Government.,  Syra- 
cuse, 1887  (written  with  special  reference  to  New 
York)  ;  Ford's  American  Citizen's  Manual.,  N.  Y., 
1887;  Rupert's  Guide  to  the  Study  of  the  History  and 
the  Constitution  of  the  United  States.,  Boston,  1888  ; 
Andrews's  Manual  of  the  Constitution  of  the  United 
States.,  Cincinnati,  1874;  Miss  Dawes,  How  we  are 
Governed.,  Boston,  1888;  Macy,  Our  Government: 
How  it  Grew.,  What  it  Does.,  and  How  it  Does  it.,  Bos- 
ton, 1887.  The  last  is  especially  good,  and  mingles 
narrative  with  exposition  in  an  unusually  interesting 
way,  NordhofFs  Politics  for  Toung  Americans^'N.  Y., 
1887,  is  a  book  that  ought  to  be  read  by  all  young 
Americans  for  its  robust  and  sound  political  philoso- 
phy. It  is  suitable  for  boys  and  girls  from  twelve  to 
fifteen  years  old.  C.  F.  Dole's  The  Citizen  and  the 
Neighbour.,  Boston,  1887,  is  a  suggestive  and  stimulat- 
300 


BIBLIOGRAPHICAL  NOTES 

ing  little  book.  For  a  comparative  survey  of  govern- 
mental institutions,  ancient  and  modern,  see  Wood- 
row  Wilson's  The  State :  Elements  of  Historical  and 
Practical  Politics^  Boston,  1889.  An  enormous  mass 
of  matter  is  compressed  into  this  volume,  and,  al- 
though it  inevitably  suffers  somewhat  from  extreme 
condensation,  it  is  so  treated  as  to  be  both  readable 
and  instructive.  The  chapter  on  The  State  and  Fed- 
eral Governments  of  the  United  States  has  been  pub- 
lished separately,  and  makes  a  convenient  little  vol- 
ume of  131  pages.  Teachers  should  find  much  help 
in  MacAlister's  Syllabus  of  a  Course  of  Elementary  In- 
struction in  United  States  History  and  Civil  Government^ 
Phila.,  1887. 

The  following  books  of  the  English  Citizen  Series, 
published  by  Macmillan  &  Co.,  may  often  be  profit- 
ably consulted  :  M.  D.  Chalmers,  Local  Government ; 
H.  D.  Traill,  Central  Government ;  F.  W.  Maitland, 
justice  and  Police ;  Spencer  Walpole,  The  Electorate 
and  the  Legislature ;  A.  J.  Wilson,  The  National 
Budget ;  T.  H.  Farrer,  The  State  in  its  Relations  to 
Trade;  W.  S.  Jevons,  The  State  in  its  Relations  to 
Labour.  The  works  on  the  English  Constitution  by 
Stubbs,  Gneist,  Taswell-Langmead,  Freeman,  and 
Bagehot  are  indispensable  to  a  thorough  understand- 
ing of  civil  government  in  the  United  States  :  Stubbs, 
Constitutional  History  of  England^  3  vols.,  London, 
1875—78  ;  Gneist,  History  of  the  English  Constitution^ 
2d  ed.,  2  vols.,  London,  1889;  Taswell-Langmead, 
English  Constitutional  History^  5th  ed.,  Boston,  1896  ; 
Freeman,  The  Groiuth  of  the  English  Constitution, 
London,  1872;  Bagehot,  The  English  Constitution,  re- 
301 


BIBLIOGRAPHICAL  NOTES 

vised  ed.,  Boston,  1873.  ^"  admirable  book  in  this 
connection  is  Hannis  Taylor's  (of  Alabama)  Origin 
and  Growth  of  the  English  Constitution^  Boston,  1889. 
In  connection  with  Bagehot's  English  Constitution 
the  student  may  profitably  read  Woodrow  Wilson's 
Congressional  Government^  Boston,  1885,  and  A.  L. 
Lowell's  Essays  in  Government^  Boston,  1890.  See 
also  Sir  H.  Maine,  Popular  Government^  London, 
1886  ;  Sir  G.  C.  Lewis  on  The  Use  and  Abuse  of  Cer- 
tain Political  TermSy  London,  1832;  Methods  of  Ob- 
servation and  Reasoning  in  Politics^  2  vols.,  London, 
1852;  and  Dialogue  on  the  Best  Form  of  Government ^ 
London,  1863. 

Among  the  most  valuable  books  ever  written  on 
the  proper  sphere  and  duties  of  civil  government  are 
Herbert  Spencer's  Social  Statics^  London,  1851  ;  The 
Study  of  Sociology,  9th  ed.,  London,  1880;  The  Man 
versus  The  State^  London,  1884;  they  are  all  re- 
printed by  D.  Appleton  &  Co.,  New  York.  The 
views  expressed  in  Social  Statics  with  regard  to  the 
tenure  of  land  are  regarded  as  unsound  by  many  who 
are  otherwise  in  entire  sympathy  with  Mr.  Spencer's 
views,  and  they  are  ably  criticised  in  Bonham's  In- 
dustrial Liberty^  N.  Y.,  1888.  A  book  of  great  merit, 
which  ought  to  be  reprinted  as  it  is  now  not  easy  to 
obtain,  is  Toulmin  Smith's  Local  Self- Government  and 
Centralization^  London,  185 1.  Its  point  of  view  is 
sufficiently  indicated  by  the  following  admirable  pair 
of  maxims  (p.  12):  — 

"  Local  Self-Government  is  that  system  of  gov- 
ernment   under   which    the    greatest   number   of  minds^ 
knowing  the  most^  and  having  the  fullest  opportunities  of 
knowing  it^  about  the  special  matter  in  hand^  and  hav- 
302 


BIBLIOGRAPHICAL  NOTES 

ing  the  greatest  interest  in  its  well-workings  have  the 
management  of  it^  or  control  over  it. 

"  Centralization  is  that  system  of  government 
under  which  the  smallest  number  of  minds^  and  those 
knowing  the  least  ^  and  having  the  fewest  opportunities  of 
knowing  it^  about  the  special  matter  in  hand^  and  having 
the  smallest  interest  in  its  well-workings  have  the  man- 
agement of  its  °^  control  over  it." 

An  immense  amount  of  wretched  misgovernment 
would  be  avoided  if  all  legislators  and  all  voters  would 
engrave  these  wholesome  definitions  upon  their  minds. 
In  connection  with  the  books  just  mentioned  much 
detailed  and  valuable  information  may  be  found  in  the 
collections  of  essays  edited  by  J.  W.  Probyn,  Local 
Government  and  Taxation  [in  various  countries], 
London,  1875  ;  Local  Government  and  Taxation  in  the 
United  Kingdom^  London,  1882.  See  also  R.  T.  Ely's 
Taxation  in  American  States  and  Cities^  N.  Y.,  1889. 

The  most  elaborate  work  on  our  political  history  is 
that  of  Hermann  von  Hoist,  Constitutional  and  Politi- 
cal History  of  the  United  States^  translated  from  the 
German  by  J.  J.  Lalor,  vols,  i.-vi.  (i 787-1859), 
Chicago,  1877—89.  In  spite  of  a  somewhat  too  pro- 
nounced partisan  bias,  its  value  is  great.  See  also 
Schouler's  History  of  the  United  States  under  the  Con- 
stitution^  vols,  i.-vi.  ( 1 783-1865),  new  ed.,  N.  Y., 
1899.  The  most  useful  handbook,  alike  for  teachers 
and  for  pupils,  is  Alexander  Johnston's  History  of 
American  Politics^  2d  ed.,  N.  Y.,  1882,  The  United 
States,  N.  Y.,  1889,  by  the  same  author,  is  also  ex- 
cellent. Every  school  should  possess  a  copy  of  Lalor's 
Cyclopedia   of  Political  Science,   Political  Economy,  and 

3^3 


BIBLIOGRAPHICAL  NOTES 

the  Political  History  of  the  United  States^  3  vols., 
Chicago,  1882—84.  The  numerous  articles  in  it  re- 
lating to  American  history  are  chiefly  by  Alexander 
Johnston,  whose  mastery  of  his  subject  was  simply 
unrivalled.  See  also  Gamaliel  Bradford's  Lessons  of 
Popular  Government.,  New  York,  1899.  For  a  man- 
ual of  constitutional  law,  Cooley's  General  Principles 
of  Constitutional  Law  in  the  United  States  of  America^ 
Boston,  1880,  is  to  be  recommended.  The  reader 
may  fitly  supplement  his  general  study  of  civil  gov- 
ernment by  the  little  book  of  E.  P.  Dole,  Talks  about 
Law  :  a  Popular  Statement  of  What  our  Law  is  and 
How  it  is  to  be  Administered.,  Boston,  1887. 

In  connection  with  the  political  history,  Stanwood's 
History  of  the  Presidency.,  Boston,  1898,  will  be  found 
useful.  See  also  Lawton's  A?nerican  Caucus  System., 
N.  Y.,  1885.  On  the  general  subject  of  civil  service 
reform,  see  Eaton's  Civil  Service  in  Great  Britain  :  a 
History  of  Abuses  and  Reforms.,  and  their  Bearing  upon 
American  Politics.,  N.  Y.,  1880.  Comstock's  Civil 
Service  in  the  United  States.,  N.  Y.,  1 880,  is  a  cata- 
logue of  offices,  with  full  account  of  civil  service 
rules,  examinations,  specimens  of  examination  papers, 
etc.  ;  also  some  of  the  state  rules,  as  in  New  York, 
Massachusetts,  etc. 

I  would  here  call  attention  to  some  publications  by 
the  Directors  of  the  Old  South  Studies  in  History  and 
Politics,  —  first.  The  Constitution  of  the  United  States^ 
with  Historical  and  Bibliographical  Notes  and  Outlines 
for  Study.,  prepared  by  E.  D.  Mead  (Directors  of  the 
Old  South  Work,  25  cents);  secondly,  the  Old  South 
Leaflets.,  furnished   to   schools  and  the   trade  by  the 

304 


BIBLIOGRAPHICAL  NOTES 

same  publishers,  at  5  cents  a  copy  or  ^4.00  a  hun- 
dred. These  leaflets  are  for  the  most  part  reprints  of 
important  original  papers,  furnished  with  valuable  his- 
torical and  bibliographical  notes.  The  titles  of  the 
earliest  issues  in  this  series  are  as  follows :  i .  The 
Constitution  of  the  United  States  ;  2.  The  Articles 
of  Confederation ;  3.  The  Declaration  of  Indepen- 
dence; 4.  Washington's  Farewell  Address;  5.  Magna 
Charta;  6.  Vane's  "Healing  Question;"  7.  Charter 
of  Massachusetts  Bay,  1629;  8.  Fundamental  Orders 
of  Connecticut,  1639;  9.  Franklin's  Plan  of  Union, 
1754;  10.  Washington's  Inaugurals;  11.  Lincoln's 
Inaugurals  and  Emancipation  Proclamation  ;  12.  The 
Federalist,  Nos.  i  and  2;  13.  The  Ordinance  of 
1787  ;  14.  The  Constitution  of  Ohio  ;  15.  Washing- 
ton's "Legacy;"  16.  Washington's  Letter  to  Benja- 
min Harrison,  Governor  of  Virginia,  on  the  Opening 
of  Communication  with  the  West;  17.  Verrazano's 
Voyage,  1524;  18.  Federal  Constitution  of  the  Swiss 
Confederation.  (Additions  are  made  to  this  list  every 
year.) 

Howard  Preston's  Documents  Illustrative  of  American 
History^  N.  Y.,  1886,  contains  the  following:  First 
Virginia  Charter,  i6o6;  Second  Virginia  Charter, 
1609;  Third  Virginia  Charter,  161 2;  Mayflower 
Compact,  1620 ;  Massachusetts  Charter,  1629; 
Maryland  Charter,  1632  ;  Fundamental  Orders  of 
Connecticut,  1639;  New  England  Confederation, 
1643;  Connecticut  Charter,  1662;  Rhode  Island 
Charter,  1663;  Pennsylvania  Charter,  1681  ;  Penn's 
Plan  of  Union,  1697;  Georgia  Charter,  1732; 
Franklin's  Plan  of  Union,  1754;  Declaration  of 
Rights,  1765;  Declaration  of  Rights,  1774;  Non- 
305 


BIBLIOGRAPHICAL  NOTES 

Importation  Agreement,  1774;  Virginia  Bill  of  Rights, 
1776;  Declaration  of  Independence,  1776;  Articles 
of  Confederation,  1777;  Treaty  of  Peace,  1783; 
Northwest  Ordinance,  1787  ;  Constitution  of  the 
United  States,  1787  ;  Alien  and  Sedition  Laws,  1798  ; 
Virginia  Resolutions,  1798;  Kentucky  Resolutions, 
1798;  Kentucky  Resolutions,  1799;  Nullification 
Ordinance,  1832;  Ordinance  of  Secession,  i860; 
South  Carolina  Declaration  of  Independence,  i860; 
Emancipation  Proclamation,  1863. 

See  also  Poore's  Federal  and  State  Constitutions^  Co- 
lonial Charters^  and  other  Organic  Laws  of  the  United 
States^  2  vols.,  Washington,  1877. 

The  series  of  essays  entitled  The  Federalist^  written 
by  Hamilton,  Madison,  and  Jay,  in  1787-88,  while 
the  ratification  of  the  Constitution  was  in  question, 
will  always  remain  indispensable  as  an  introduction  to 
the  thorough  study  of  the  principles  upon  which  our 
federal  government  is  based.  The  most  recent  edi- 
tion is  by  H.  C.  Lodge,  N.  Y.,  1888.  For  the  sys- 
tematic and  elaborate  study  of  the  Constitution,  see 
Foster's  References  to  the  Constitution  of  the  United 
States^  a  little  pamphlet  of  50  pages  published  by  the 
*'  Society  for  Political  Education,"  330  Pearl  St., 
New  York,  1890,  price  25  cents. 

For  very  pleasant  and  profitable  reading,  in  con- 
nection with  the  formation  and  interpretation  of  the 
Constitution,  and  the  political  history  of  our  country 
from  1763  to  1850,  we  have  the  American  States- 
men Series,  edited  by  J.  T.  Morse,  and  published  by 
Houghton,  Mifflin  &  Co.,  Boston,  1882-1900  :  Ben- 
jamin Franklin^  by  J.  T.  Morse  ;  Patrick  Henry ^  by 
306 


BIBLIOGRAPHICAL  NOTES 

M.  C.  Tyler  ;  Samuel  Adains^  by  J.  K.  Hosmer ;  George 
Washington^  by  H.  C.  Lodge,  2  vols. ;  'John  Adams 
and  Thomas  Jefferson^  by  J.  T.  Morse ;  Alexander 
Hamilton^  by  H.  C.  Lodge  ;  Gouverneur  Morris^  by 
T.  Roosevelt  \  James  Madison^  by  S.  H.  Gay  ;  James 
Monroe^  by  D.  C.  Gilman  ;  Albert  Gallatin^  by  J.  A. 
Stevens;  John  Randolph^  by  H.  Adams;  John  Jay^ 
by  G.  Pellew  ;  John  Marshall^  by  A.  B.  Magruder  ; 
John  ^incy  Adams^  by  J.  T.  Morse ;  John  C.  Cal- 
houn^ by  H.  von  Hoist;  Andrew  Jackson^  by  W.  G. 
Sumner;  Martin  Van  Buren,  by  E.  M.  Shepard ; 
Henry  Clay,  by  C.  Schurz,  2  vols. ;  Daniel  Webster, 
by  H.  C.  Lodge;  Tho/7ias  H.  Benton,  by  T.  Roose- 
velt ;  Lewis  Cass,  by  Prof.  Andrew  C.  McLaugh- 
lin ;  Abraham.  Lincoln,  by  John  T.  Morse,  2  vols. ; 
William  H.  Seward,  by  Thornton  K.  Lothrop  ;  Sal- 
mon P.  Chase,  by  Albert  Bushnell  Hart ;  Charles 
Francis  Adams,  by  C.  F.  Adams,  Jr. ;  Charles  Sumner, 
by  Moorfield  Storey ;  Thaddeus  Stevens,  by  Samuel 
W.  McCall. 

The  arguments  in  favour  of  protectionism  are  set 
forth  in  Bowen's  American  Political  Economy,  last  ed., 
N.  Y.,  1870 ;  the  arguments  in  favour  of  free  trade 
are  set  forth  in  Perry's  Political  Economy,  19th  ed., 
N.  Y.,  1887  ;  and  for  an  able  and  impartial  historical 
survey,  Taussig's  Tariff  History  of  the  United  States, 
N.  Y.,  1888,  may  be  recommended.  For  a  lucid 
view  of  currency,  see  Jevons's  Money  and  the  Mecha- 
nism of  Exchange,  N.  Y.,  1 875. 

A  useful  work  on  the  Australian  method  of  voting 
is  Wigmore's  The  Australian  Ballot  System,  2d  ed., 
Boston,  1890. 


i 


I 


APPENDIX  A 
THE  ARTICLES  OF  CONFEDERATION 

Articles  of  Confederation  and  Perpetual  Union  between 
the  States  of  New  Hampshire^  Massachusetts  Bay, 
Rhode  Island  and  Providence  Plantations,  Connecticut, 
New  York,  New  fersey,  Pennsylvania,  Delaware, 
Maryland,  Virginia,  North  Carolina,  South  Carolina, 
and  Georgia. 

Article  I.  —  The  style  of  this  Confederacy  shall 
be,  "  The  United  States  of  America." 

Art.  II.  —  Each  State  retains  its  sovereignty,  free- 
dom, and  independence,  and  every  power,  jurisdiction, 
and  right,  which  is  not  by  this  Confederation  ex- 
pressly delegated  to  the  United  States  in  Congress 
assembled. 

Art.  III.  —  The  said  States  hereby  severally  enter 
into  a  firm  league  of  friendship  with  each  other,  for 
their  common  defence,  the  security  of  their  liberties, 
and  their  mutual  and  general  welfare,  binding  them- 
selves to  assist  each  other  against  all  force  offered  to, 
or  attacks  made  upon  them,  or  any  of  them,  on  ac- 
count of  religion,  sovereignty,  trade,  or  any  other  pre- 
tence whatever. 

Art.  IV.  —  The  better  to  secure  and  perpetuate 
mutual  friendship  and  intercourse  among  the  people 
of  the  different  States  in  this  Union,  the  free  inhabit- 
ants of  each  of  these  States,  paupers,  vagabonds,  and 

2>Q9 


APPENDIX  A 

fugitives  from  justice  excepted,  shall  be  entitled  to 
all  privileges  and  immunities  of  free  citizens  in  the 
several  States  ;  and  the  people  of  each  State  shall  have 
free  ingress  and  egress  to  and  from  any  other  State,  and 
shall  enjoy  therein  all  the  privileges  of  trade  and  com- 
merce subject  to  the  same  duties,  impositions,  and 
restrictions  as  the  inhabitants  thereof  respectively ; 
provided  that  such  restrictions  shall  not  extend  so 
far  as  to  prevent  the  removal  of  property  imported 
into  any  State  to  any  other  State  of  which  the  owner 
is  an  inhabitant ;  provided  also,  that  no  imposition, 
duties,  or  restriction  shall  be  laid  by  any  State  on  the 
property  of  the  United  States  or  either  of  them.  If 
any  person  guilty  of,  or  charged  with,  treason,  felony, 
or  other  high  misdemeanour  in  any  State  shall  flee 
from  justice  and  be  found  in  any  of  the  United  States, 
he  shall,  upon  demand  of  the  governor  or  executive 
power  of  the  State  from  which  he  fled,  be  delivered 
up  and  removed  to  the  State  having  jurisdiction  of  his 
offence.  Full  faith  and  credit  shall  be  given  in  each  of 
these  States  to  the  records,  acts,  and  judicial  proceed- 
ings of  the  courts  and  magistrates  of  every  other  State. 
Art.  V.  —  For  the  more  convenient  management 
of  the  general  interests  of  the  United  States,  delegates 
shall  be  annually  appointed  in  such  manner  as  the 
Legislature  of  each  State  shall  direct,  to  meet  in  Con- 
gress on  the  first  Monday  in  November,  in  every 
year,  with  a  power  reserved  to  each  State  to  recall  its 
delegates,  or  any  of  them,  at  any  time  within  the  year, 
and  to  send  others  in  their  stead  for  the  remainder  of 
the  year.  No  State  shall  be  represented  in  Congress 
by  less  than  two,  nor  by  more  than  seven  members  i 

310 


I 


ARTICLES  OF  CONFEDERATION 

and  no  person  shall  be  capable  of  being  a  delegate  for 
more  than  three  years  in  any  term  of  six  years ;  nor 
shall  any  person,  being  a  delegate,  be  capable  of 
holding  any  office  under  the  United  States  for  which 
he,  or  another  for  his  benefit,  receives  any  salary,  fees, 
or  emolument  of  any  kind.  Each  State  shall  main- 
tain its  own  delegates  in  any  meeting  of  the  States 
and  while  they  act  as  members  of  the  Committee  of 
the  States.  In  determining  questions  in  the  United 
States,  in  Congress  assembled,  each  State  shall  have 
one  vote.  Freedom  of  speech  and  debate  in  Congress 
shall  not  be  impeached  or  questioned  in  any  court  or 
place  out  of  Congress  ;  and  the  members  of  Congress 
shall  be  protected  in  their  persons  from  arrests  and 
imprisonment  during  the  time  of  their  going  to  and 
from,  and  attendance  on.  Congress,  except  for  treason, 
felony,  or  breach  of  the  peace. 

Art.  VI.  — No  State,  without  the  consent  of  the 
United  States,  in  Congress  assembled,  shall  send  any 
embassy  to,  or  receive  any  embassy  from,  or  enter 
into  any  conference,  agreement,  alliance,  or  treaty 
with  any  king,  prince,  or  state  ;  nor  shall  any  person 
holding  any  office  of  profit  or  trust  under  the  United 
States,  or  any  of  them,  accept  of  any  present,  emolu- 
ment, office,  or  title  of  any  kind  whatever  from  any 
king,  prince,  or  foreign  state  ;  nor  shall  the  United 
States,  in  Congress  assembled,  or  any  of  them,  grant 
any  title  of  nobility. 

No  two  or  more  States  shall  enter  into  any  treaty, 
confederation,  or  alliance  whatever  between  them, 
without  the  consent  of  the  United  States,  in  Congress 
assembled,    specifying   accurately    the    purposes    for 


311 


APPENDIX  A 

which  the  same  is  to  be  entered  into,  and  how  long 
it  shall  continue. 

No  State  shall  lay  any  imposts  or  duties  which  may 
interfere  with  any  stipulations  in  treaties  entered  into 
by  the  United  States,  in  Congress  assembled,  with 
any  king,  prince,  or  state,  in  pursuance  of  any  treaties 
already  proposed  by  Congress  to  the  courts  of  France 
and  Spain. 

No  vessel  of  war  shall  be  kept  up  in  time  of  peace 
by  any  State,  except  such  number  only  as  shall  be 
deemed  necessary  by  the  United  States,  in  Congress 
assembled,  for  the  defence  of  such  State  or  its  trade, 
nor  shall  any  body  of  forces  be  kept  up  by  any  State 
in  time  of  peace,  except  such  number  only  as,  in 
the  judgment  of  the  United  States,  in  Congress  as- 
sembled, shall  be  deemed  requisite  to  garrison  the 
forts  necessary  for  the  defence  of  such  State ;  but 
every  State  shall  always  keep  up  a  well-regulated  and 
disciplined  militia,  sufficiently  armed  and  accoutred, 
and  shall  provide  and  constantly  have  ready  for  use 
in  public  stores  a  due  number  of  field-pieces  and 
tents,  and  a  proper  quantity  of  arms,  ammunition, 
and  camp  equipage. 

No  State  shall  engage  in  any  war  without  the  con- 
sent of  the  United  States,  in  Congress  assembled, 
unless  such  State  be  actually  invaded  by  enemies,  or 
shall  have  received  certain  advice  of  a  resolution  be- 
ing formed  by  some  nation  of  Indians  to  invade  such 
State,  and  the  danger  is  so  imminent  as  not  to  admit 
of  a  delay  till  the  United  States,  in  Congress  as- 
sembled, can  be  consulted  ;  nor  shall  any  State  grant 
commissions  to  any  ships  or  vessels  of  war,  nor  letters 
of  marque  or  reprisal,  except  it  be  after  a  declaration 
312 


ARTICLES  OF  CONFEDERATION 

of  war  by  the  United  States,  in  Congress  assembled, 
and  then  only  against  the  kingdom  or  state,  and  the 
subjects  thereof,  against  which  war  has  been  so  de- 
clared, and  under  such  regulations  as  shall  be  estab- 
lished by  the  United  States,  in  Congress  assembled, 
unless  such  State  be  infested  by  pirates,  in  which  case 
vessels  of  war  may  be  fitted  out  for  that  occasion,  and 
kept  so  long  as  the  danger  shall  continue,  or  until  the 
United  States,  in  Congress  assembled,  shall  determine 
otherwise. 

Art.  VII.  —  When  land  forces  are  raised  by  any 
State  for  the  common  defence,  all  officers  of  or  under 
the  rank  of  Colonel  shall  be  appointed  by  the  Legis- 
lature of  each  State  respectively  by  whom  such  forces 
shall  be  raised,  or  in  such  manner  as  such  State  shall 
direct,  and  all  vacancies  shall  be  filled  up  by  the  State 
which  first  made  the  appointment. 

Art.  VIII.  —  All  charges  of  war,  and  all  other 
expenses  that  shall  be  incurred  for  the  common  de- 
fence, or  general  welfare,  and  allowed  by  the  United 
States,  in  Congress  assembled,  shall  be  defrayed  out 
of  a  common  treasury,  which  shall  be  supplied  by  the 
several  States  in  proportion  to  the  value  of  all  land 
within  each  State,  granted  to,  or  surveyed  for,  any 
person,  as  such  land  and  the  buildings  and  improve- 
ments thereon  shall  be  estimated,  according  to  such 
mode  as  the  United  States,  in  Congress  assembled, 
shall,  from  time  to  time,  direct  and  appoint.  The 
taxes  for  paying  that  proportion  shall  be  laid  and 
levied  by  the  authority  and  direction  of  the  Legisla- 
tures of  the  several  States,  within  the  time  agreed 
upon  by  the  United  States,  in  Congress  assembled. 

Art.  IX.  —  The  United  States,  in  Congress  as- 

3U 


APPENDIX  A 

sembled,  shall  have  the  sole  and  exclusive  right  and 
power  of  determining  on  peace  and  war,  except  in  the 
cases  mentioned  in  the  sixth  Article  ;  of  sending  and 
receiving  ambassadors ;  entering  into  treaties  and  alli- 
ances, provided  that  no  treaty  of  commerce  shall  be 
made,  whereby  the  legislative  power  of  the  respective 
States  shall  be  restrained  from  imposing  such  imposts 
and  duties  on  foreigners  as  their  own  people  are  sub- 
jected to,  or  from  prohibiting  the  exportation  or  impor- 
tation of  any  species  of  goods  or  commodities  what- 
ever; of  establishing  rules  for  deciding,  in  all  cases, 
what  captures  on  land  and  water  shall  be  legal,  and 
in  what  manner  prizes  taken  by  land  or  naval  forces 
in  the  service  of  the  United  States  shall  be  divided  or 
appropriated ;  of  granting  letters  of  marque  and  re- 
prisal in  times  of  peace;  appointing  courts  for  the 
trial  of  piracies  and  felonies  committed  on  the  high 
seas ;  and  establishing  courts  for  receiving  and  deter- 
mining finally  appeals  in  all  cases  of  captures ;  pro- 
vided that  no  member  of  Congress  shall  be  appointed 
a  judge  of  any  of  the  said  courts. 

The  United  States,  in  Congress  assembled,  shall 
also  be  the  last  resort  on  appeal  in  all  disputes  and 
differences  now  subsisting,  or  that  hereafter  may  arise 
between  two  or  more  States  concerning  boundary 
jurisdiction,  or  any  other  cause  whatever;  which 
authority  shall  always  be  exercised  in  the  manner 
following:  Whenever  the  legislative  or  executive 
authority,  or  lawful  agent  of  any  State  in  controversy 
with  another,  shall  present  a  petition  to  Congress, 
stating  the  matter  in  question,  and  praying  for  a  hear- 
ing, notice  thereof  shall  be  given  by  order  of  Congress 
to  the  legislative  or  executive  authority  of  the  other 

3H 


ARTICLES  OF  CONFEDERATION 

State  in  controversy,  and  a  day  assigned  for  the  ap- 
pearance of  the  parties  by  their  lawful  agents,  who 
shall  then  be  directed  to  appoint,  by  joint  consent, 
commissioners  or  judges  to  constitute  a  court  for 
hearing  and  determining  the  matter  in  question  ;  but 
if  they  cannot  agree.  Congress  shall  name  three  per- 
sons out  of  each  of  the  United  States,  and  from  the 
list  of  such  persons  each  party  shall  alternately  strike 
out  one,  the  petitioners  beginning,  until  the  number 
shall  be  reduced  to  thirteen  ;  and  from  that  number 
not  less  than  seven  nor  more  than  nine  names,  as 
Congress  shall  direct,  shall,  in  the  presence  of  Con- 
gress, be  drawn  out  by  lot ;  and  the  persons  whose 
names  shall  be  so  drawn,  or  any  five  of  them,  shall 
be  commissioners  or  judges,  to  hear  and  finally  de- 
termine the  controversy,  so  always  as  a  major  part  of 
the  judges  who  shall  hear  the  cause  shall  agree  in  the 
determination  ;  and  if  either  party  shall  neglect  to 
attend  at  the  day  appointed,  without  showing  reasons 
which  Congress  shall  judge  sufficient,  or  being  pre- 
sent, shall  refuse  to  strike,  the  Congress  shall  proceed 
to  nominate  three  persons  out  of  each  State,  and  the 
secretary  of  Congress  shall  strike  in  behalf  of  such 
party  absent  or  refusing  ;  and  the  judgment  and  sen- 
tence of  the  court,  to  be  appointed  in  the  manner  be- 
fore prescribed,  shall  be  final  and  conclusive  ;  and  if 
any  of  the  parties  shall  refuse  to  submit  to  the  authority 
of  such  court,  or  to  appear  or  defend  their  claim  or 
cause,  the  court  shall  nevertheless  proceed  to  pronounce 
sentence  or  judgment,  which  shall  in  like  manner  be 
final  and  decisive ;  the  judgment  or  sentence  and  other 
proceedings  being  in  either  case  transmitted  to  Con- 
gress, and  lodged  among  the  acts  of  Congress  for  the 


APPENDIX  A 

security  of  the  parties  concerned ;  provided,  that  every 
commissioner,  before  he  sits  in  judgment,  shall  take 
an  oath,  to  be  administered  by  one  of  the  judges  of 
the  supreme  or  superior  court  of  the  State  where  the 
cause  shall  be  tried,  "  w^ell  and  truly  to  hear  and  de- 
termine the  matter  in  question,  according  to  the  best 
of  his  judgment,  without  favour,  affection,  or  hope 
of  reward."  Provided,  also,  that  no  State  shall  be 
deprived  of  territory  for  the  benefit  of  the  United 
States. 

All  controversies  concerning  the  private  right  of 
soil  claimed  under  different  grants  of  two  or  more 
States,  whose  jurisdictions,  as  they  may  respect  such 
lands,  and  the  States  which  passed  such  grants  are  ad- 
justed, the  said  grants  or  either  of  them  being  at  the 
same  time  claimed  to  have  originated  antecedent  to 
such  settlement  of  jurisdiction,  shall,  on  the  petition 
of  either  party  to  the  Congress  of  the  United  States, 
be  finally  determined,  as  near  as  may  be,  in  the  same 
manner  as  is  before  prescribed  for  deciding  disputes 
respecting  territorial  jurisdiction  between  different 
States. 

The  United  States,  in  Congress  assembled,  shall 
also  have  the  sole  and  exclusive  right  and  power  of 
regulating  the  alloy  and  value  of  coin  struck  by  their 
own  authority,  or  by  that  of  the  respective  States ; 
fixing  the  standard  of  weights  and  measures  through- 
out the  United  States  ;  regulating  the  trade  and  man- 
aging all  affairs  with  the  Indians,  not  members  of  any 
of  the  States  ;  provided  that  the  legislative  right  of  any 
State,  within  its  own  limits,  be  not  infringed  or  vio- 
lated ;  establishing  and  regulating  post-offices  from 
one  State  to  another,  throughout  all  the  United  States, 
316 


ARTICLES  OF  CONFEDERATION 

and  exacting  such  postage  on  the  papers  passing 
through  the  same  as  may  be  requisite  to  defray  the  ex- 
penses of  the  said  office  ;  appointing  all  officers  of  the 
land  forces  in  the  service  of  the  United  States,  except- 
ing regimental  officers ;  appointing  all  the  officers  of 
the  naval  forces,  and  commissioning  all  officers  w^hat- 
ever  in  the  service  of  the  United  States;  making  rules 
for  the  government  and  regulation  of  the  said  land  and 
naval  forces,  and  directing  their  operations. 

The  United  States,  in  Congress  assembled,  shall 
have  authority  to  appoint  a  committee,  to  sit  in  the 
recess  of  Congress,  to  be  denominated  "  A  Commit- 
tee of  the  States,"  and  to  consist  of  one  delegate  from 
each  State,  and  to  appoint  such  other  committees  and 
civil  officers  as  may  be  necessary  for  managing  the 
general  affairs  of  the  United  States  under  their  direc- 
tion ;  to  appoint  one  of  their  number  to  preside ;  pro- 
vided that  no  person  be  allovi^ed  to  serve  in  the  office 
of  president  more  than  one  year  in  any  term  of  three 
years  ;  to  ascertain  the  necessary  sums  of  money  to  be 
raised  for  the  service  of  the  United  States,  and  to  ap- 
propriate and  apply  the  same  for  defraying  the  public 
expenses;  to  borrow  money  or  emit  bills  on  the  credit 
of  the  United  States,  transmitting  every  half  year  to 
the  respective  States  an  account  of  the  sums  of  money 
so  borrowed  or  emitted ;  to  build  and  equip  a  navy  ; 
to  agree  upon  the  number  of  land  forces,  and  to  make 
requisitions  from  each  State  for  its  quota,  in  propor- 
tion to  the  number  of  white  inhabitants  in  such  State, 
which  requisition  shall  be  binding ;  and  thereupon  the 
Legislature  of  each  State  shall  appoint  the  regimental 
officers,  raise  the  men,  and  clothe,  arm,  and  equip 
them  in  a  soldier-like  manner,  at  the  expense  of  the 


APPENDIX  A 

United  States  ;  and  the  officers  and  men  so  clothed, 
armed,  and  equipped  shall  march  to  the  place  ap- 
pointed, and  within  the  time  agreed  on  by  the  United 
States,  in  Congress  assembled  ;  but  if  the  United 
States,  in  Congress  assembled,  shall,  on  consideration 
of  circumstances,  judge  proper  that  any  State  should 
not  raise  men,  or  should  raise  a  smaller  number  than 
its  quota,  and  that  any  other  State  should  raise  a 
greater  number  of  men  than  the  quota  thereof,  such 
extra  number  shall  be  raised,  officered,  clothed,  armed, 
and  equipped  in  the  same  manner  as  the  quota  of  such 
State,  unless  the  Legislature  of  such  State  shall  judge 
that  such  extra  number  cannot  be  safely  spared  out  of 
the  same,  in  which  case  they  shall  raise,  officer,  clothe, 
arm,  and  equip  as  many  of  such  extra  number  as  they 
judge  can  be  safely  spared,  and  the  officers  and  men 
so  clothed,  armed,  and  equipped  shall  march  to  the 
place  appointed,  and  within  the  time  agreed  on  by  the 
United  States,  in  Congress  assembled. 

The  United  States,  in  Congress  assembled,  shall 
never  engage  in  a  war,  nor  grant  letters  of  marque 
and  reprisal  in  time  of  peace,  nor  enter  into  any  trea- 
ties or  alliances,  nor  coin  money,  nor  regulate  the  value 
thereof,  nor  ascertain  the  sums  and  expenses  neces- 
sary for  the  defence  and  welfare  of  the  United  States, 
or  any  of  them,  nor  emit  bills,  nor  borrow  money  on 
the  credit  of  the  United  States,  nor  appropriate  money, 
nor  agree  upon  the  number  of  vessels  of  war  to  be 
built  or  purchased,  or  the  number  of  land  or  sea  forces 
to  be  raised,  nor  appoint  a  commander-in-chief  of  the 
army  or  navy,  unless  nine  States  assent  to  the  same, 
nor  shall  a  question  on  any  other  point,  except  for 
adjourning  from  day  to  day,  be  determined,  unless  by 

318 


ARTICLES  OF  CONFEDERATION 

the  votes  of  a  majority  of  the  United  States,  in  Con- 
gress assembled. 

The  Congress  of  the  United  States  shall  have 
power  to  adjourn  at  any  time  within  the  year,  and  to 
any  place  within  the  United  States,  so  that  no  period 
of  adjournment  be  for  a  longer  duration  than  the 
space  of  six  months,  and  shall  publish  the  journal  of 
their  proceedings  monthly,  except  such  parts  thereof 
relating  to  treaties,  alliances,  or  military  operations  as 
in  their  judgment  require  secrecy  ;  and  the  yeas  and 
nays  of  the  delegates  of  each  State,  on  any  question, 
shall  be  entered  on  the  journal  when  it  is  desired  by 
any  delegate ;  and  the  delegates  of  a  State,  or  any  of 
them,  at  his  or  their  request,  shall  be  furnished  with  a 
transcript  of  the  said  journal  except  such  parts  as  are 
above  excepted,  to  lay  before  the  Legislatures  of  the 
several  States. 

Art.  X.  —  The  Committee  of  the  States,  or  any 
nine  of  them,  shall  be  authorized  to  execute,  in  the 
recess  of  Congress,  such  of  the  powers  of  Congress  as 
the  United  States,  in  Congress  assembled,  by  the  con- 
sent of  nine  States,  shall,  from  time  to  time,  think 
expedient  to  vest  them  with ;  provided  that  no  power 
be  delegated  to  the  said  Committee,  for  the  exercise 
of  which,  by  the  Articles  of  Confederation,  the  voice 
of  nine  States  in  the  Congress  of  the  United  States 
assembled  is  requisite. 

Art.  XI.  —  Canada,  acceding  to  this  Confedera- 
tion, and  joining  in  the  measures  of  the  United  States, 
shall  be  admitted  into,  and  entitled  to  all  the  advan- 
tages of  this  Union  ;  but  no  other  colony  shall  be  ad- 
mitted into  the  same,  unless  such  admission  be  agreed 
to  by  nine  States. 

3^9 


APPENDIX  A 

Art.  XII.  —  All  billsof  credit  emitted,  moneys  bor- 
rowed, and  debts  contracted  by  or  under  the  authority 
of  Congress,  before  the  assembling  of  the  United 
States,  in  pursuance  of  the  present  Confederation, 
shall  be  deemed  and  considered  as  a  charge  against  the 
United  States,  for  payment  and  satisfaction  whereof 
the  said  United  States  and  the  public  faith  are  hereby 
solemnly  pledged. 

Art.  XIII.  —  Every  State  shall  abide  by  the  de- 
terminations of  the  United  States,  in  Congress  as- 
sembled, on  all  questions  which  by  this  Confederation 
are  submitted  to  them.  And  the  Articles  of  this  Con- 
federation shall  be  inviolably  observed  by  every  State, 
and  the  Union  shall  be  perpetual ;  nor  shall  any  al- 
teration at  any  time  hereafter  be  made  in  any  of  them, 
unless  such  alteration  be  agreed  to  in  a  Congress  of 
the  United  States,  and  be  afterwards  confirmed  by  the 
Legislatures  of  every  State. 

And  whereas  it  hath  pleased  the  great  Governor 
of  the  world  to  incline  the  hearts  of  the  Legislatures 
we  respectively  represent  in  Congress  to  approve  of, 
and  to  authorize  us  to  ratify,  the  said  Articles  of  Con- 
federation and  perpetual  Union,  know  ye,  that  we,  the 
undersigned  delegates,  by  virtue  of  the  power  and 
authority  to  us  given  for  that  purpose,  do,  by  these 
presents,  in  the  name  and  in  behalf  of  our  respective 
constituents,  fully  and  entirely  ratify  and  confirm  each 
and  every  of  the  said  Articles  of  Confederation  and 
perpetual  Union,  and  all  and  singular  the  matters  and 
things  therein  contained.  And  we  do  further  solemnly 
plight  and  engage  the  faith  of  our  respective  constitu- 
ents, that  they  shall  abide  by  the  determinations  of  the 
320 


THE  CONSTITUTION 

United  States,  in  Congress  assembled,  on  all  questions 
which  by  the  said  Confederation  are  submitted  to  them  ; 
and  that  the  Articles  thereof  shall  be  inviolably  ob- 
served by  the  States  we  respectively  represent,  and 
that  the  Union  shall  be  perpetual. 

In  witness  whereof  we  have  hereunto  set  our  hands 
in  Congress.  Done  at  Philadelphia  in  the  State 
of  Pennsylvania  the  ninth  day  of  July  in  the 
year  of  our  Lord  one  thousand  seven  hundred 
and  seventy-eight,  and  in  the  third  year  of  the 
independence  of  America. 


APPENDIX  B 

THE   CONSTITUTION  OF  THE  UNITED 
STATES 

Preamble.^ 

We,  the  people  of  the  United  States,  in  order  to 
form  a  more  perfect  union,  establish  justice,  insure 
domestic  tranquillity,  provide  for  the  common  defence, 
promote  the  general  welfare,  and  secure  the  blessings 
of  liberty  to  ourselves  and  our  posterity,  do  ordain 
and  establish  this  Constitution  for  the  United  States 
of  America. 

Article  I.     Legislative  Department. 2 

Section  I.     Congress  in  General. 

All  legislative  powers  herein  granted  shall  be  vested 

^  Compare  this  Preamble  with  Confed.  Art.  I.  and  III. 
^  Compare  Art.  I.  §§  i.-vii.  with  Confed.  Art.  V. 
321 


APPENDIX  B 

in  a  Congress  of  the  United  States,  which  shall  con- 
sist of  a  Senate  and  House  of  Representatives. 

Section  II.    House  of  Representatives. 

1.  The  House  of  Representatives  shall  be  com- 
posed of  members  chosen  every  second  year  by  the 
people  of  the  several  States,  and  the  electors  in  each 
State  shall  have  the  qualifications  requisite  for  electors 
of  the  most  numerous  branch  of  the  State  legislature. 

2.  No  person  shall  be  a  Representative  who  shall 
not  have  attained  the  age  of  twenty-five  years,  and 
been  seven  years  a  citizen  of  the  United  States,  and 
who  shall  not,  when  elected,  be  an  inhabitant  of  that 
State  in  which  he  shall  be  chosen. 

3.  Representatives  and  direct  taxes  shall  be  appor- 
tioned among  the  several  States  which  may  be  in- 
cluded within  this  Union,  according  to  their  respec- 
tive numbers,  which  shall  be  determined  by  adding  to 
the  whole  number  of  free  persons,  including  those 
bound  to  service  for  a  term  of  years,  and  excluding 
Indians  not  taxed,  three  fifths  of  all  other  persons. 
The  actual  enumeration  shall  be  made  within  three 
years  after  the  first  meeting  of  the  Congress  of  the 
United  States,  and  within  every  subsequent  term  of 
ten  years,  in  such  manner  as  they  shall  by  law  direct. 
The  number  of  Representatives  shall  not  exceed  one 
for  every  thirty  thousand,  but  each  State  shall  have 
at  least  one  Representative  ;  and  until  such  enumera- 
tion shall  be  made,  the  State  of  New  Hampshire  shall 
be  entitled  to  choose  three,  Massachusetts  eight,  Rhode 
Island  and  Providence  Plantations  one,  Connecticut  five. 
New  York  six.  New   "Jersey  four,  Pennsylvania  eight, 


322 


THE  CONSTITUTION 

Delaware   one,    Maryland  six,    Virginia    ten,    North 
Carolina  five.  South  Carolina  five,  and  Georgia  three. 

4.  When  vacancies  happen  in  the  representation 
from  any  State,  the  executive  authority  thereof  shall 
issue  writs  of  election  to  fill  such  vacancies. 

5.  The  House  of  Representatives  shall  choose  their 
Speaker  and  other  officers,  and  shall  have  the  sole 
power  of  impeachment. 

Section  III.    Senate. 

1.  The  Senate  of  the  United  States  shall  be  com- 
posed of  two  Senators  from  each  State,  chosen  by 
the  legislature  thereof,  for  six  years;  and  each  Senator 
shall  haye  one  vote. 

2.  Immediately  after  they  shall  be  assembled  in 
consequence  of  the  first  election,  they  shall  be  divided 
as  equally  as  may  be  into  three  classes.  The  seats  of 
the  Senators  of  the  first  class  shall  be  vacated  at  the 
expiration  of  the  second  year ;  of  the  second  class,  at  the 
expiration  of  the  fourth  year,  and  of  the  third  class,  at 
the  expiration  of  the  sixth  year,  so  that  one  third  may 
be  chosen  every  second  year  ;  and  if  vacancies  happen 
by  resignation  or  otherwise  during  the  recess  of  the 
legislature  of  any  State,  the  executive  thereof  may 
make  temporary  appointments  until  the  next  meeting 
of  the  legislature,  which  shall  then  fill  such  vacancies. 

3.  No  person  shall  be  a  Senator  who  shall  not  have 
attained  to  the  age  of  thirty  years,  and  been  nine 
years  a  citizen  of  the  United  States,  and  who  shall 
not,  when  elected,  be  an  inhabitant  of  that  State 
for  which  he  shall  be  chosen. 

4.  The  Vice-President  of  the   United  States  shall 


2n 


APPENDIX  B 

be  President  of  the  Senate,  but   shall  have  no  vote, 
unless  they  be  equally  divided. 

5.  The  Senate  shall  choose  their  other  officers,  and 
also  a  President  pro  tempore  in  the  absence  of  the  Vice- 
President,  or  vi^hen  he  shall  exercise  the  office  of  Presi- 
dent of  the  United  States. 

6.  The  Senate  shall  have  the  sole  power  to  try  all 
impeachments.  When  sitting  for  that  purpose,  they 
shall  be  on  oath  or  affirmation.  When  the  Presi- 
dent of  the  United  States  is  tried,  the  Chief  Justice 
shall  preside :  and  no  person  shall  be  convicted  with 
out  the  concurrence  of  two  thirds  of  the  members 
present. 

7.  Judgment  in  cases  of  impeachment  shall  not 
extend  further  than  to  removal  from  office  and  disqual- 
ification to  hold  and  enjoy  any  office  of  honour,  trust, 
or  profit  under  the  United  States ;  but  the  party  con- 
victed shall,  nevertheless,  be  liable  and  subject  to  in- 
dictment, trial,  judgment,  and  punishment,  according 
to  law. 

Section  IV.    Both  Homes. 

1.  The  times,  places,  and  manner  of  holding  elec- 
tions for  Senators  and  Representatives  shall  be  pre- 
scribed in  each  State  by  the  legislature  thereof;  but 
the  Congress  may  at  any  time  by  law  make  or  alter 
such  regulations,  except  as  to  the  places  of  choosing 
Senators. 

2.  The  Congress  shall  assemble  at  least  once  in 
every  year,  and  such  meeting  shall  be  on  the  first 
Monday  in  December,  unless  they  shall  by  law  ap- 
point a  different  day. 


THE  CONSTITUTION 

Section  V.     The  Houses  Separately. 

1.  Each  house  shall  be  the  judge  of  the  elections, 
returns,  and  qualifications  of  its  own  members,  and  a 
majority  of  each  shall  constitute  a  quorum  to  do  busi- 
ness ;  but  a  smaller  number  may  adjourn  from  day 
to  day,  and  may  be  authorized  to  compel  the  attend- 
ance of  absent  members,  in  such  manner,  and  under 
such  penalties,  as  each  house  may  provide. 

2.  Each  house  may  determine  the  rules  of  its  pro- 
ceedings, punish  its  members  for  disorderly  behaviour, 
and  with  the  concurrence  of  two  thirds,  expel  a  mem- 
ber. 

3.  Each  house  shall  keep  a  journal  of  its  proceed- 
ings, and  from  time  to  time  publish  the  same,  except- 
ing such  parts  as  may  in  their  judgment  require 
secrecy,  and  the  yeas  and  nays  of  the  members  of 
either  house  on  any  question  shall,  at  the  desire  of 
one  fifth  of  those  present,  be  entered  on  the  journal. 

4.  Neither  house,  during  the  session  of  Congress, 
shall,  without  the  consent  of  the  other,  adjourn  for 
more  than  three  days,  nor  to  any  other  place  than  that 
in  which  the  two  houses  shall  be  sitting. 

Section  VI.    Privileges  and  Disabilities  of  Members. 

I.  The  Senators  and  Representatives  shall  receive 
a  compensation  for  their  services,  to  be  ascertained 
by  law  and  paid  out  of  the  Treasury  of  the  United 
States.  They  shall,  in  all  cases  except  treason,  felony, 
and  breach  of  the  peace,  be  privileged  from  arrest  dur- 
ing their  attendance  at  the  session  of  their  respective 
houses,  and  in  going  to  and  returning  from  the  same ; 


325 


APPENDIX  B 

and  for    any  speech  or  debate  in  either  house  they 
shall  not  be  questioned  in  any  other  place. 

2.  No  Senator  or  Representative  shall,  during  the 
time  for  which  he  was  elected,  be  appointed  to  any 
civil  office  under  the  authority  of  the  United  States, 
which  shall  have  been  created,  or  the  emoluments 
whereof  shall  have  been  increased  during  such  time  ; 
and  no  person  holding  any  office  under  the  United 
States  shall  be  a  member  of  either  house  during  his 
continuance  in  office. 

Section  VII.    Mode  of  Passing  Laws. 

1.  All  bills  for  raising  revenue  shall  originate  in 
the  House  of  Representatives;  but  the  Senate  may 
propose  or  concur  with  amendments  as  on  other  bills. 

2.  Every  bill  which  shall  have  passed  the  House 
of  Representatives  and  the  Senate  shall,  before  it 
become  a  law,  be  presented  to  the  President  of  the 
United  States ;  if  he  approve  he  shall  sign  it,  but 
if  not  he  shall  return  it,  with  his  objections,  to  that 
house  in  which  it  shall  have  originated,  who  shall  enter 
the  objections  at  large  on  their  journal  and  proceed  to 
reconsider  it.  If  after  such  reconsideration  two  thirds 
of  that  house  shall  agree  to  pass  the  bill,  it  shall  be 
sent,  together  with  the  objections,  to  the  other  house, 
by  which  it  shall  likewise  be  reconsidered,  and  if  ap- 
proved by  two  thirds  of  that  house  it  shall  become  a 
law.  But  in  all  such  cases  the  votes  of  both  houses 
shall  be  determined  by  yeas  and  nays,  and  the  names 
of  the  persons  voting  for  and  against  the  bill  shall  be 
entered  on  the  journal  of  each  house  respectively.  If 
any  bill  shall  not  be  returned  by  the  President  within 
ten  days  (Sundays  excepted)  after  it  shall  have  been 

326 


THE  CONSTITUTION 

presented  to  him,  the  same  shall  be  a  law,  in  like 
manner  as  if  he  had  signed  it,  unless  the  Congress  by 
their  adjournment  prevent  its  return,  in  which  case  it 
shall  not  be  a  law. 

3.  Every  order,  resolution,  or  vote  to  which  the 
concurrence  of  the  Senate  and  House  of  Representa- 
tives may  be  necessary  (except  on  a  question  of  ad- 
journment) shall  be  presented  to  the  President  of  the 
United  States  ;  and  before  the  same  shall  take  effect, 
shall  be  approved  by  him,  or  being  disapproved  by  him, 
shall  be  repassed  by  two  thirds  of  the  Senate  and 
House  of  Representatives,  according  to  the  rules  and 
limitations  prescribed  in  the  case  of  a  bill. 

Section  VIII.    Powers  granted  to  Congress.^ 
The  Congress  shall  have  power  : 

1.  To  lay  and  collect  taxes,  duties,  imposts,  and 
excises,  to  pay  the  debts  and  provide  for  the  com- 
mon defence  and  general  welfare  of  the  United  States  ; 
but  all  duties,  imposts,  and  excises  shall  be  uniform 
throughout  the  United  States  ; 

2.  To  borrow  money  on  the  credit  of  the  United 
States  ; 

3.  To  regulate  commerce  with  foreign  nations  and 
among  the  several  States,  and  with  the  Indian  tribes  ; 

4.  To  establish  an  uniform  rule  of  naturalization, 
and  uniform  laws  on  the  subject  of  bankruptcies 
throughout  the  United  States ; 

5.  To  coin  money,  regulate  the  value  thereof,  and 

^  Compare  §§  viii.  and  ix,  with  Confed.  Art.  IX.  ;  clause 
I  of  §  viii.  with  Confed.  Art.  VIII.  ;  and  clause  1 2  of  §  viii. 
with  Confed.  Art.  VII. 


327 


APPENDIX  B 

of  foreign  coin,  and  fix  the  standard  of  weights  and 
measures ; 

6.  To  provide  for  the  punishment  of  counterfeiting 
the  securities  and  current  coin  of  the  United  States  ; 

7.  To  establish  post-offices  and  post-roads  ; 

8.  To  promote  the  progress  of  science  and  useful 
arts  by  securing  for  limited  times  to  authors  and  in- 
ventors the  exclusive  right  to  their  respective  writings 
and  discoveries  •, 

9.  To  constitute  tribunals  inferior  to  the  Supreme 
Court ; 

10.  To  define  and  punish  piracies  and  felonies 
committed  on  the  high  seas  and  offences  against  the 
law  of  nations  ; 

11.  To  declare  war,  grant  letters  of  marque  and 
reprisal,  and  make  rules  concerning  captures  on  land 
and  water ; 

12.  To  raise  and  support  armies,  but  no  appropria- 
tion of  money  to  that  use  shall  be  for  a  longer  term 
than  two  years  ; 

13.  To  provide  and  maintain  a  navy  ; 

14.  To  make  rules  for  the  government  and  regula- 
tion of  the  land  and  naval  forces ; 

15.  To  provide  for  calling  forth  the  militia  to  ext 
ecute  the  laws  of  the  Union,  suppress  insurrections, 
and  repel  invasions ; 

16.  To  provide  for  organizing,  arming,  and  dis- 
ciplining the  militia,  and  for  governing  such  part  of 
them  as  may  be  employed  in  the  service  of  the  United 
States,  reserving  to  the  States  respectively  the  appoint- 
ment of  the  officers,  and  the  authority  of  training  the 
militia  according  to  the  discipline  prescribed  by  Con- 
gress ; 

328 


THE  CONSTITUTION 

17.  To  exercise  exclusive  legislation  in  all  cases 
whatsoever  over  such  district  (not  exceeding  ten  miles 
square)  as  may,  by  cession  of  particular  States  and  the 
acceptance  of  Congress,  become  the  seat  of  the  Gov- 
ernment of  the  United  States,  and  to  exercise  like 
authority  over  all  places  purchased  by  the  consent  of 
the  legislature  of  the  State  in  vi^hich  the  same  shall  be, 
for  the  erection  of  forts,  magazines,  arsenals,  dock- 
yards, and  other  needful  buildings ;  and 

18.  To  make  all  laws  which  shall  be  necessary  and 
proper  for  carrying  into  execution  the  foregoing 
powers,  and  all  other  powers  vested  by  this  Constitu- 
tion in  the  Government  of  the  United  States,  or  in 
any  department  or  officer  thereof.^ 

Section  IX.    Powers  denied  to  the  United  States. 

1.  The  migration  or  importation  of  such  persons 
as  any  of  the  States  now  existing  shall  think  proper 
to  admit  shall  not  be  prohibited  by  the  Congress  prior 
to  the  year  one  thousand  eight  hundred  and  eight,  but 
a  tax  or  duty  may  be  imposed  on  such  importation, 
not  exceeding  ten  dollars  for  each  person. 

2.  The  privilege  of  the  writ  of  habeas  corpus  shall 
not  be  suspended,  unless  when  in  cases  of  rebellion  or 
invasion  the  public  safety  may  require  it. 

3.  No  bill  of  attainder  or  ex  post  facto  law  shall  be 
passed. 

4.  No  capitation  or  other  direct  tax  shall  be  laid, 
unless  in  proportion  to  the  census  or  enumeration 
hereinbefore  directed  to  be  taken. 

^  This  is  the  Elastic  Clause  in  the  interpretation  of  which 
arose  the  original  and  fundamental  division  of  political  parties. 
See  above,  pp.  266,  281. 


APPENDIX  B 

5.  No  tax  or  duty  shall  be  laid  on  articles  exported 
from  any  State. 

6.  No  preference  shall  be  given  by  any  regulation 
of  commerce  or  revenue  to  the  ports  of  one  State  over 
those  of  another ;  nor  shall  vessels  bound  to  or  from 
one  State  be  obliged  to  enter,  clear,  or  pay  duties  in 
another. 

7.  No  money  shall  be  drawn  from  the  Treasury 
but  in  consequence  of  appropriations  made  by  law  ; 
and  a  regular  statement  and  account  of  the  receipts 
and  expenditures  of  all  public  money  shall  be  pub- 
lished from  time  to  time. 

8.  No  title  of  nobility  shall  be  granted  by  the 
United  States ;  and  no  person  holding  any  office  of 
profit  or  trust  under  them  shall,  without  the  consent 
of  the  Congress,  accept  of  any  present,  emolument, 
office,  or  title,  of  any  kind  whatever,  from  any  king, 
prince,  or  foreign  State. 

Section  X.    Powers  denied  to  the  States?- 

1.  No  State  shall  enter  into  any  treaty,  alliance,  or 
confederation  ;  grant  letters  of  marque  and  reprisal ; 
coin  money  ;  emit  bills  of  credit ;  make  anything  but 
gold  and  silver  coin  a  tender  in  payment  of  debts  ; 
pass  any  bill  of  attainder,  ex  post  facto  law,  or  law 
impairing  the  obligation  of  contracts,  or  grant  any 
title  of  nobility. 

2.  No  State  shall,  without  the  consent  of  Congress, 
lay  any  imposts  or  duties  on  imports  or  exports,  ex- 
cept what  may  be  absolutely  necessary  for  executing 
its  inspection  laws ;  and  the  net  produce  of  all  duties 
and  imposts,  laid  by  any  State  on  imports  or  exports, 

1  Compare  §  x.  with  Confed.  Art.  VI. 


THE  CONSTITUTION 

shall  be  for  the  use  of  the  Treasury  of  the  United 
States  ;  and  all  such  laws  shall  be  subject  to  the  re- 
vision and  control  of  the  Congress. 

3.  No  State  shall,  without  the  consent  of  Congress, 
lay  any  duty  of  tonnage,  keep  troops  or  ships  of  war 
in  time  of  peace,  enter  into  any  agreement  or  com- 
pact with  another  State  or  with  a  foreign  power,  or 
engage  in  war,  unless  actually  invaded  or  in  such  im- 
minent danger  as  will  not  admit  of  delay. 


Article  II.      Executive  Department.! 

Section  I.     President  and  Vice-President. 

1.  The  executive  power  shall  be  vested  in  a  Presi- 
dent of  the  United  States  of  America.  He  shall  hold 
his  office  during  the  term  of  four  years,  and  together 
with  the  Vice-President,  chosen  for  the  same  term,  be 
elected  as  follows  : 

2.  Each  State  shall  appoint,  in  such  manner  as  the 
legislature  thereof  may  direct,  a  number  of  electors, 
equal  to  the  whole  number  of  Senators  and  Repre- 
sentatives to  which  the  State  may  be  entitled  in  the 
Congress ;  but  no  Senator  or  Representative,  or  per- 
son holding  an  office  of  trust  or  profit  under  the 
United  States,  shall  be  appointed  an  elector. 

3.  [The  electors  shall  meet  in  their  respective 
States  and  vote  by  ballot  for  two  persons,  of  whom 
one  at  least  shall  not  be  an  inhabitant  of  the  same 
State  with  themselves.  And  they  shall  make  a  list  of 
all  the  persons  voted  for,  and  of  the  number  of  votes  for 
each ;  which  list  they  shall  sign  and  certify,  and  trans- 

1  Compare  Art.  II.  with  Confed.  Art.  X. 

23^ 


APPENDIX  B 

mit  sealed  to  the  seat  of  government  of  the  United 
States,  directed  to  the  President  of  the  Senate.  The 
President  of  the  Senate  shall,  in  the  presence  of  the 
Senate  and  House  of  Representatives,  open  all  the  cer- 
tificates, and  the  votes  shall  then  be  counted.  The 
person  having  the  greatest  number  of  votes  shall  be 
the  President,  if  such  number  be  a  majority  of  the 
whole  number  of  electors  appointed ;  and  if  there  be 
more  than  one  who  have  such  majority,  and  have  an 
equal  number  of  votes,  then  the  House  of  Representa- 
tives shall  immediately  choose  by  ballot  one  of  them 
for  President ;  and  if  no  person  have  a  majority,  then 
from  the  five  highest  on  the  list  the  said  House  shall 
in  like  manner  choose  the  President.  But  in  choos- 
ing the  President  the  votes  shall  be  taken  by  States, 
the  representation  from  each  State  having  one  vote ;  a 
quorum  for  this  purpose  shall  consist  of  a  member  or 
members  from  two  thirds  of  the  States,  and  a  major- 
ity of  all  the  States  shall  be  necessary  to  a  choice.  In 
every  case,  after  the  choice  of  the  President,  the  person 
having  the  greatest  number  of  votes  of  the  electors 
shall  be  the  Vice-President.  But  if  there  should  re- 
main two  or  more  who  have  equal  votes,  the  Senate 
shall  choose  from  them  by  ballot  the  Vice-President. ].i 

4.  The  Congress  may  determine  the  time  of  choos- 
ing the  electors  and  the  day  on  which  they  shall  give 
their  votes,  which  day  shall  be  the  same  throughout 
the  United  States. 

5.  No  person  except  a  natural-born  citizen,  or  a  citi- 
zen of  the  United  States  at  the  time  of  the  adoption 

*  This  clause  of  the  Constitution  has  been  amended.  See 
Amendments,  Art.  XII. 

33^ 


I 


THE  CONSTITUTION 

of  this  Constitution,  shall  be  eligible  to  the  office  of 
President ;  neither  shall  any  person  be  eligible  to  that 
office  who  shall  not  have  attained  to  the  age  of  thirty- 
five  years,  and  been  fourteen  years  a  resident  within 
the  United  States. 

6.  In  case  of  the  removal  of  the  President  from 
office,  or  of  his  death,  resignation,  or  inability  to  dis- 
charge the  powers  and  duties  of  the  said  office,  the 
same  shall  devolve  on  the  Vice-President,  and  the 
Congress  may  by  law  provide  for  the  case  of  removal, 
death,  resignation,  or  inability,  both  of  the  President 
and  Vice-President,  declaring  what  officer  shall  then 
act  as  President,  and  such  officer  shall  act  accordingly 
until  the  disability  be  removed  or  a  President  shall  be 
elected. 

7.  The  President  shall,  at  stated  times,  receive  for 
his  services  a  compensation,  which  shall  neither  be 
increased  nor  diminished  during  the  period  for  which 
he  may  have  been  elected,  and  he  shall  not  receive 
within  that  period  any  other  emolument  from  the 
United  States  or  any  of  them. 

8.  Before  he  enter  on  the  execution  of  his  office 
he  shall  take  the  following  oath  or  affirmation  : 

"  I  do  solemnly  swear  (or  affirm)  that  I  will  faith- 
fully execute  the  office  of  President  of  the  United 
States,  and  will  to  the  best  of  my  ability  preserve, 
protect,  and  defend  the  Constitution  of  the  United 
States." 

Section  11.    Powers  of  the  President. 

I.  The  President  shall  be  Commander-in-chief  of 
the  Army  and  Navy  of  the  United  States,  and  of  the 
militia   of  the   several   States   when   called   into  the 

332 


APPENDIX  B 

actual  service  of  the  United  States ;   he  may  require     « 
the  opinion,  in  writing,  of  the  principal  officer  in  each    m 
of  the  executive  departments,  upon  any  subject  relat- 
ing to  the  duties  of  their  respective  offices,  and  he 
shall  have  power  to  grant  reprieves  and  pardons   for 
offences  against  the  United  States,  except  in  cases  of    aj 
impeachment.  ^ 

2.  He  shall  have  power,  by  and  with  the  advice 
and  consent  of  the  Senate,  to  make  treaties,  provided 
two  thirds  of  the  Senators  present  concur;  and  he 
shall  nominate,  and,  by  and  with  the  advice  and  con- 
sent of  the  Senate,  shall  appoint  ambassadors,  other 
public  ministers  and  consuls,  judges  of  the  Supreme 
Court,  and  all  other  officers  of  the  United  States, 
whose  appointments  are  not  herein  otherwise  provided 
for,  and  which  shall  be  established  by  law ;  but  the 
Congress  may  by  law  vest  the  appointment  of  such 
inferior  officers,  as  they  think  proper,  in  the  President 
alone,  in  the  courts  of  law,  or  in  the  heads  of  depart- 
ments. 

3.  The  President  shall  have  power  to  fill  up  all 
vacancies  that  may  happen  during  the  recess  of  the 
Senate,  by  granting  commissions  which  shall  expire  at 
the  end  of  their  next  session. 

Section  III.  Duties  of  the  President. 
He  shall  from  time  to  time  give  to  the  Congress 
information  of  the  state  of  the  Union,  and  recom- 
mend to  their  consideration  such  measures  as  he  shall 
judge  necessary  and  expedient ;  he  may,  on  extraordi- 
nary occasions,  convene  both  houses,  or  either  of 
them,  and  in  case  of  disagreement  between  them  with 
respect  to  the  time  of  adjournment,  he  may  adjourn 

334 


THE  CONSTITUTION 

them  to  such  time  as  he  shall  think  proper;  he  shall 
receive  ambassadors  and  other  public  ministers  ;  he 
shall  take  care  that  the  laws  be  faithfully  executed, 
and  shall  commission  all  the  officers  of  the  United 
States. 

Section  IV.    Impeachment. 
The  President,  Vice-President,  and  all  civil  officers 
of  the  United  States  shall  be  removed  from  office  on 
impeachment  for  and  conviction  of  treason,  bribery, 
or  other  high  crimes  and  misdemeanours. 

Article  III.      Judicial  Department.* 

Section  I.  United  States  Courts. 
The  judicial  power  of  the  United  States  shall  be 
vested  in  one  Supreme  Court,  and  in  such  inferior 
courts  as  the  Congress  may  from  tirhe  to  time  ordain 
and  establish.  The  judges,  both  of  the  supreme  and 
inferior  courts,  shall  hold  their  offices  during  good 
behaviour,  and  shall,  at  stated  times,  receive  for  their 
services  a  compensation  which  shall  not  be  diminished 
during  their  continuance  in  office. 

Section  II.    jurisdiction  of  the  United  States  Courts. 

I.  The  judicial  power  shall  extend  to  all  cases,  in 
law  and  equity,  arising  under  this  Constitution,  the 
laws  of  the  United  States,  and  treaties  made,  or  which 
shall  be  made,  under  their  authority  ;  to  all  cases  af- 
fecting ambassadors,  other  public  ministers,  and  con- 
suls ;  to  all  cases  of  admiralty  and  maritime  jurisdic- 
tion ;  to  controversies  to  which  the  United  States  shall 

^  Compare  Art.  III.  with  the  first  three  paragraphs  of 
Confed.  Art.  IX. 

335 


APPENDIX  B 

be  a  party ;  to  controversies  between  two  or  more 
States;  between  a  State  and  citizens  of  another  State; 
between  citizens  of  different  States  ;  between  citizens 
of  the  same  State  claiming  lands  under  grants  of  dif- 
ferent States,  and  between  a  State,  or  the  citizens 
thereof,  and  foreign  States,  citizens,  or  subjects.^ 

2.  In  all  cases  affecting  ambassadors,  other  public 
ministers  and  consuls,  and  those  in  which  a  State  shall 
be  a  party,  the  Supreme  Court  shall  have  original 
jurisdiction.  In  all  the  other  cases  before  mentioned 
the  Supreme  Court  shall  have  appellate  jurisdiction, 
both  as  to  law  and  fact,  with  such  exceptions,  and 
under  such  regulations  as  the  Congress  shall  make. 

3.  The  trial  of  all  crimes,  except  in  cases  of  im- 
peachment, shall  be  by  jury ;  and  such  trial  shall  be 
held  in  the  State  where  the  said  crimes  shall  have  been 
committed;  but  when  not  committed  within  any  State, 
the  trial  shall  be  at  such  place  or  places  as  the  Con-  g| 
gress  may  by  law  have  directed.  " 

Section  III.     Treason. 

1.  Treason  against  the  United  States  shall  consist 
only  in  levying  war  against  them,  or  in  adhering  to 
their  enemies,  giving  them  aid  and  comfort.  No  person 
shall  be  convicted  of  treason  unless  on  the  testimony 
of  two  witnesses  to  the  same  overt  act,  or  on  confes- 
sion in  open  court. 

2.  The  Congress  shall  have  power  to  declare  the 
punishment  of  treason,  but  no  attainder  of  treason 
shall  work  corruption  of  blood  or  forfeiture  except 
during  the  life  of  the  person  attainted. 

1  This  clause  has  been  amended.  See  Amendments, 
Art.  XI. 


THE  CONSTITUTION 


Article   IV.     The    States   and  the    Federal    Govern- 
ment.^ 

Section  I.    State  Records. 

Full  faith  and  credit  shall  be  given  in  each  State  to 
the  public  acts,  records,  and  judicial  proceedings  of 
every  other  State.  And  the  Congress  may  by  general 
laws  prescribe  the  manner  in  which  such  acts,  re- 
cords, and  proceedings  shall  be  proved,  and  the  effect 
thereof. 

Section  II.    Privileges  of  Citizens^  etc. 

1.  The  citizens  of  each  State  shall  be  entitled  to  all 
privileges  and  immunities  of  citizens  in  the  several 
States. 

2.  A  person  charged  in  any  State  with  treason,  fel- 
ony, or  other  crime,  who  shall  flee  from  justice,  and 
be  found  in  another  State,  shall,  on  demand  of  the 
executive  authority  of  the  State  from  which  he  fled, 
be  delivered  up,  to  be  removed  to  the  State  having 
jurisdiction  of  the  crime. 

3.  No  person  held  to  service  or  labour  in  one  State, 
under  the  laws  thereof,  escaping  into  another,  shall, 
in  consequence  of  any  law  or  regulation  therein,  be 
discharged  from  such  service  or  labour,  but  shall  be 
delivered  up  on  claim  of  the  party  to  whom  such  ser- 
vice or  labour  may  be  due.^ 

1  Compare  Art.  IV.  with  Confed.  Art.  IV. 
^  This  clause  has  been  cancelled  by  Amendment  XIII., 
which  abolishes  slavery. 


337 


APPENDIX  B 

Section  III.    New  States  and  Territories }■ 

1.  New  States  may  be  admitted  by  the  Congress 
into  this  Union  ;  but  no  new  State  shall  be  formed  or 
erected  within  the  jurisdiction  of  any  other  State  ;  nor 
any  State  be  formed  by  the  junction  of  two  or  more 
States  or  parts  of  States,  without  the  consent  of  the 
legislatures  of  the  States  concerned  as  well  as  of  the 
Congress. 

2.  The  Congress  shall  have  power  to  dispose  of 
and  make  all  needful  rules  and  regulations  respecting 
the  territory  or  other  property  belonging  to  the  United 
States  ;  and  nothing  in  this  Constitution  shall  be  so 
construed  as  to  prejudice  any  claims  of  the  United 
States  or  of  any  particular  State. 

Section  IV.  Guarantee  to  the  States. 
The  United  States  shall  guarantee  to  every  State  in 
this  Union  a  republican  form  of  government,  and  shall 
protect  each  of  them  against  invasion,  and  on  applica- 
tion of  the  legislature,  or  of  the  executive  (when  the 
legislature  cannot  be  convened),  against  domestic 
violence. 

Article  V.  Power  of  Amendment.* 
The  Congress,  whenever  two  thirds  of  both  houses 
shall  deem  it  necessary,  shall  propose  amendments  to 
this  Constitution,  or,  on  the  application  of  the  legis- 
latures of  two  thirds  of  the  several  States,  shall  call  a 
convention  for  proposing  amendments,  which  in  either 
case  shall  be  valid  to  all  intents  and  purposes  as  part 

*  Compare  §  iii.  with  Confed.  Art.  XI. 
a  Compare  Art.V.  with  Confed.  Art.  XIII. 


THE  CONSTITUTION 

of  this  Constitution,  when  ratified  by  the  legislatures 
of  three  fourths  of  the  several  States,  or  by  conven- 
tions in  three  fourths  thereof,  as  the  one  or  the  other 
mode  of  ratification  may  be  proposed  by  the  Congress, 
provided  that  no  amendments  which  may  be  made 
prior  to  the  year  one  thousand  eight  hundred  and  eight 
shall  in  any  manner  affect  the  first  and  fourth  clauses 
in  the  ninth  section  of  the  first  article ;  and  that  no 
State,  without  its  consent,  shall  be  deprived  of  its 
equal  suffrage  in  the  Senate. 

Article  VI.      Public  Debt,  Supremacy  of  the  Constitu- 
tion, Oath  of  Office,  Religious  Test. 

1.  All  debts  contracted  and  engagements  entered 
into,  before  the  adoption  of  this  Constitution,  shall  be 
as  valid  against  the  United  States  under  this  Constitu- 
tion as  under  the  confederation. 

2.  This  Constitution,  and  the  laws  of  the  United 
States  which  shall  be  made  in  pursuance  thereof,  and 
all  treaties  made,  or  which  shall  be  made,  under 
the  authority  of  the  United  States,  shall  be  the  su- 
preme law  of  the  land ;  and  the  judges  in  every  State 
shall  be  bound  thereby,  anything  in  the  Constitu- 
tion or  laws  of  any  State  to  the  contrary  notwith- 
standing. 

3.  The  Senators  and  Representatives  before  men- 
tioned, and  the  members  of  the  several  St'ate  legisla- 
tures, and  all  executive  and  judicial  officers  both  of 
the  United  States  and  of  the  several  States,  shall  be 
bound  by  oath  or  affirmation  to  support  this  Constitu- 
tion ;  but  no  religious  test  shall  ever  be  required  as  a 

*  Compare  clause  i  with  Confed.  Art.  XII. 

2>39 


APPENDIX  B 

qualification  to  any  office  or  public  trust  under  the 
United  States.^ 


Article  VII.      Ratification  of  the  Constitution. 

The  ratification  of  the  conventions  of  nine  States 
shall  be  sufficient  for  the  establishment  of  this  Con- 
stitution between  the  States  so  ratifying  the  same. 

Done  in  convention  by  the  unanimous  consent  of 
the  States  present,*  the  seventeenth  day  of  Sep- 
tember, in  the  year  of  our  Lord  one  thousand 
seven  hundred  and  eighty-seven,  and  of  the  In- 
dependence of  the  United  States  of  America  the 
tw^elfth.  In  witness  whereof,  we  have  hereunto 
subscribed  our  names. 

George  Washington,  President,  and  Deputy  from 
Virginia. 

New  Hampshire  —  John  Langdon,  Nicholas  Gil- 
man. 

Massachusetts  —  Nathaniel  Gorham,  Rufus  King. 

Connecticut  —  William  Samuel  Johnson,  Roger 
Sherman. 

New  York  —  Alexander  Hamilton. 

New  Jersey  —  William  Livingston,  David  Brearly, 
William  Patterson,  Jonathan  Dayton. 

Pennsylvania  —  Benjamin  Franklin,  Thomas  Mif- 
flin,   Robert    Morris,    George     Clymer,    Thomas 

^  Compare  clauses  2  and  3  with  Confed.  Art.  XIII.  and 
addendum,  "And  whereas,"  etc. 

*  Rhode  Island  sent  no  delegates  to  the  Federal  Conven- 
tion. 


THE  CONSTITUTION 

Fitzsimons,  Jared  Ingersoll,  James  Wilson,  Gou- 
verneur  Morris. 

Delaware  —  George  Read,  Gunning  Bedford,  Jr., 
John  Dickinson,  R-ichard  Bassett,  Jacob  Broom. 

Maryland  —  James     McHenry,     Daniel      of     St. 
Thomas  Jenifer,  Daniel  Carroll. 

Virginia  —  John  Blair,  James  Madison,  Jr. 

North  Carolina  —  William  Blount,  Richard  Dobbs 
Spaight,  Hugh  Williamson. 

South  Carolina  —  John  Rutledge,  Charles  Cotes- 
worth  Pinckney,  Charles  Pinckney,  Pierce  Butler. 

Georgia  —  William  Few,  Abraham  Baldwin. 

Attest :  William  Jackson,  Secretary, 


AMENDMENTS 

Article  I. 
Congress  shall  make  no  law  respecting  an  establish- 
ment of  religion,  or  prohibiting  the  free  exercise 
thereof;  or  abridging  the  freedom  of  speech  or  of  the 
press ;  or  the  right  of  the  people  peaceably  to  assem- 
ble, and  to  petition  the  government  for  a  redress  of 
grievances. 

Article  II. 

A  well-regulated  militia  being  necessary  to  the  se- 
curity of  a  free  state,  the  right  of  the  people  to  keep 
and  bear  arms  shall  not  be  infringed. 

Article  III. 

No  soldier  shall,  in  time  of  peace,  be  quartered  in 

^  Amendments  I.  to  X .  were  proposed  by  Congress,  Sept. 
25,  1789,  and  declared  in  force  Dec.   15,  1791. 


APPENDIX  B 

any  house  without  the  consent  of  the  owner,  nor  in 
time  of  war,  but  in  a  manner  to  be  prescribed  by  law. 

Article  IV. 
The  right  of  the  people  to  be  secure  in  their  per- 
sons, houses,  papers,  and  effects,  against  unreasonable 
searches  and  seizures,  shall  not  be  violated,  and  no 
warrants  shall  issue  but  upon  probable  cause,  sup- 
ported by  oath  or  affirmation,  and  particularly  describ- 
ing the  place  to  be  searched,  and  the  persons  or  things 
to  be  seized. 

Article  V. 
No  person  shall  be  held  to  answer  for  a  capital  or 
otherwise  infamous  crime,  unless  on  a  presentment 
or  indictment  of  a  grand  jury,  except  in  cases  arising 
in  the  land  or  naval  forces,  or  in  the  militia,  when  in 
actual  service  in  time  of  war  or  public  danger ;  nor 
shall  any  person  be  subject  for  the  same  offence  to  be 
twice  put  in  jeopardy  of  life  or  limb;  nor  shall  be 
compelled  in  any  criminal  case  to  be  a  witness  against 
himself,  nor  be  deprived  of  life,  liberty,  or  property, 
without  due  process  of  law  ;  nor  shall  private  property 
be  taken  for  public  use  without  just  compensation. 

Article  VI. 
In  all  criminal  prosecutions  the  accused  shall  enjoy 
the  right  to  a  speedy  and  public  trial,  by  an  impartial 
jury  of  the  state  and  district  wherein  the  crime  shall 
have  been  committed,  which  district  shall  have  been 
previously  ascertained  by  law,  and  to  be  informed  of 
the  nature  and  cause  of  the  accusation  ;  to  be  con- 
fronted with  the  witnesses  against  him;  to  have  com- 


THE  CONSTITUTION 

pulsory  process  for  obtaining  witnesses  in  his  favour, 
and  to  have  the  assistance  of  counsel  for  his  defence. 

Article  VII. 

In  suits  at  common  law,  where  the  value  in  con- 
troversy shall  exceed  twenty  dollars,  the  right  of  trial 
by  jury  shall  be  preserved,  and  no  fact  tried  by  a  jury 
shall  be  otherwise  reexamined  in  any  court  of  the 
United  States,  than  according  to  the  rules  of  the 
common  law. 

Article  VIII. 

Excessive  bail  shall  not  be  required,  nor  excessive 
fines  imposed,  nor  cruel  and  unusual  punishments 
inflicted. 

Article  IX. 

The  enumeration  in  the  Constitution  of  certain 
rights  shall  not  be  construed  to  deny  or  disparage 
others  retained  by  the  people. 

Article  X.^ 

The  powers  not  delegated  to  the  United  States  by 
the  Constitution,  nor  prohibited  by  it  to  the  States, 
are  reserved  to  the  States  respectively  or  to  the  people. 

Article  XI. '^ 

The  judicial  power  of  the  United  States  shall  not 
be  construed  to  extend  to  any  suit  in  law  or  equity, 
commenced  or  prosecuted  against  one  of  the  United 
States  by  citizens  of  another  State,  or  by  citizens  or 
subjects  of  any  foreign  State. 

^  Compare  Amendment  X.  with  Confed.  Art.  II. 
^  Proposed  by  Congress  March  5,  1794,  and  deelared  in 
force  Jan.  8,  1798. 

343 


APPENDIX  B 

Article  XII.  i 

I.  The  electors  shall  meet  in  their  respective  States 
and  vote  by  ballot  for  President  and  Vice-President, 
one  of  vi^hom,  at  least,  shall  not  be  an  inhabitant  of 
the  same  State  w^ith  themselves ;  they  shall  name  in 
their  ballots  the  person  voted  for  as  President,  and  in 
distinct  ballots  the  person  voted  for  as  Vice-President, 
and  they  shall  make  distinct  lists  of  all  persons  voted 
for  as  President  and  of  all  persons  voted  for  as  Vice- 
President,  and  of  the  number  of  votes  for  each ;  which 
lists  they  shall  sign  and  certify,  and  transmit  sealed  to 
the  seat  of  the  government  of  the  United  States,  di- 
rected to  the  President  of  the  Senate.  The  President 
of  the  Senate  shall,  in  the  presence  of  the  Senate  and 
House  of  Representatives,  open  all  the  certificates  and 
the  votes  shall  then  be  counted.  The  person  having 
the  greatest  number  of  votes  for  President  shall  be 
the  President,  if  such  number  be  a  majority  of  the 
whole  number  of  electors  appointed  ;  and  if  no  person 
have  such  majority,  then  from  the  persons  having  the 
highest  numbers  not  exceeding  three  on  the  list  of 
those  voted  for  as  President,  the  House  of  Repre- 
sentatives shall  choose  immediately,  by  ballot,  the 
President.  But  in  choosing  the  President  the  votes 
shall  be  taken  by  States,  the  representation  from  each 
State  having  one  vote  ;  a  quorum  for  this  purpose  shall 
consist  of  a  member  or  members  from  two  thirds  of 
the  States,  and  a  majority  of  all  the  States  shall  be 
necessary  to  a  choice.  And  if  the  House  of  Repre- 
sentatives shall  not  choose  a  President  whenever  the 

^  Proposed  by  Congress  Dec.  12,  1803,  and  declared  in 
force  Sept.  25,  1804. 

344 


THE  CONSTITUTION 

right  of  choice  shall  devolve  upon  them,  before  the 
fourth  day  of  March  next  following,  then  the  Vice- 
President  shall  act  as  President,  as  in  the  case  of  the 
death  or  other  constitutional  disability  of  the  Presi- 
dent. 

2.  The  person  having  the  greatest  number  of  votes 
as  Vice-President  shall  be  the  Vice-President,  if  such 
number  be  a  majority  of  the  whole  number  of  electors 
appointed  ;  and  if  no  person  have  a  majority,  then  from 
the  two  highest  numbers  on  the  list  the  Senate  sha,ll 
choose  the  Vice-President ;  a  quorum  for  the  purpose 
shall  consist  of  two  thirds  of  the  whole  number  of 
Senators,  and  a  majority  of  the  whole  number  shall  be 
necessary  to  a  choice. 

3.  But  no  person  constitutionally  ineligible  to  the 
office  of  President  shall  be  eligible  to  that  of  Vice- 
President  of  the  United  States. 

Article  XIII.  ^ 

1.  Neither  slavery  nor  involuntary  servitude,  ex- 
cept as  a  punishment  for  crime  whereof  the  party  shall 
have  been  duly  convicted,  shall  exist  within  the  United 
States  or  any  place  subject  to  their  jurisdiction. 

2.  Congress  shall  have  power  to  enforce  this  article 
by  appropriate  legislation. 

Article  XIV.  2 

I.  All  persons  born  or  naturalized  in  the  United 
States,  and  subject  to  the  jurisdiction  thereof,  are  citi- 

1  Proposed  by  Congress  Feb.  i,  1865,  and  declared  in 
force  Dec.   18,  1865. 

^  Proposed  by  Congress  June  16,  1866,  and  declared  in 
force  July  28,  1868. 

345 


APPENDIX  B 

zens  of  the  United  States  and  of  the  State  wherein 
they  reside.  No  State  shall  make  or  enforce  any  law 
which  shall  abridge  the  privileges  or  immunities  of 
citizens  of  the  United  States ;  nor  shall  any  State  de- 
prive any  person  of  life,  liberty,  or  property,  without 
due  process  of  law ;  nor  deny  to  any  person  within 
its  jurisdiction  the  equal  protection  of  the  laws. 

2.  Representatives  shall  be  apportioned  among  the 
several  States  according  to  their  respective  numbers, 
counting  the  whole  number  of  persons  in  each  State, 
excluding  Indians  not  taxed.  But  when  the  right  to 
vote  at  any  election  for  the  choice  of  electors  for 
President  and  Vice-President  of  the  United  States, 
Representatives  in  Congress,  the  executive  and  judi- 
cial officers  of  a  State,  or  the  members  of  the  legisla- 
ture thereof,  is  denied  to  any  of  the  male  inhabitants 
of  such  State,  being  twenty-one  years  of  age,  and  citi- 
zens of  the  United  States,  or  in  any  way  abridged,  ex- 
cept for  participation  in  rebellion,  or  other  crime,  the 
basis  of  representation  therein  shall  be  reduced  in  the 
proportion  which  the  number  of  such  male  citizens 
shall  bear  to  the  whole  number  of  male  citizens 
twenty-one  years  of  age  in  such  State. 

3.  No  person  shall  be  a  Senator  or  Representative 
in  Congress,  or  elector  of  President  and  Vice-Presi- 
dent, or  hold  any  office,  civil  or  military,  under  the 
United  States  or  under  any  State,  who,  having  previ- 
ously taken  an  oath  as  a  member  of  Congress,  or  as 
an  officer  of  the  United  States,  or  as  a  member  of  any 
State  legislature,  or  as  an  executive  or  judicial  officer 
of  any  State,  to  support  the  Constitution  of  the  United 
States,  shall  have  engaged  in  insurrection  or  rebellion 
against  the  same,  or  given  aid  or  comfort  to  the  ene- 


THE  CONSTITUTION 

mies  thereof.      But  Congress  may,  by  a  vote  of  two 
thirds  of  each  house,  remove  such  disability. 

4.  The  validity  of  the  public  debt  of  the  United 
States,  authorized  by  law,  including  debts  incurred  for 
payment  of  pensions  and  bounties  for  services  in  sup- 
pressing insurrection  or  rebellion,  shall  not  be  ques- 
tioned. But  neither  the  United  States  nor  any  State 
shall  assume  or  pay  any  debt  or  obligation  incurred  in 
aid  of  insurrection  or  rebellion  against  the  United 
States,  or  any  claim  for  the  loss  or  emancipation  of 
any  slave  ;  but  all  such  debts,  obligations,  and  claims 
shall  be  held  illegal  and  void. 

5.  The  Congress  shall  have  power  to  enforce,  by 
appropriate  legislation,  the  provisions  of  this  article. 

Article  XV.  ^ 

1.  The  right  of  citizens  of  the  United  States  to 
vote  shall  not  be  denied  or  abridged  by  the  United 
States  or  by  any  State  on  account  of  race,  colour,  or 
previous  condition  of  servitude. 

2.  The  Congress  shall  have  power  to  enforce  this 
article  by  appropriate  legislation. 

FRANKLIN'S  SPEECH  ON  THE  LAST  DAY 
OF  THE  CONSTITUTIONAL  CONVEN- 
TION 2 

Monday,  September  17.  In  Convention  —  The  en- 
grossed Constitution  being  read.  Doctor  Franklin  rose 

^  Proposed  by  Congress,  Feb.  26,  1869,  and  declared  in 
force,  March  30,  1870. 

"  From  Madison's  "Journal,"  in  E\\ot'?,  Debates,  vol.  v. 

p.  554- 

347 


APPENDIX  B 

with  a  speech  in  his  hand,  which  he  had  reduced  to 
writing  for  his  own  convenience,  and  which  Mr. 
Wilson  read  in  the  words  following  :  — 

"  Mr.  President  :  I  confess  that  there  are  several 
parts  of  this  Constitution  which  I  do  not  at  present 
approve,  but  I  am  not  sure  I  shall  never  approve 
them.  For,  having  lived  long,  I  have  experienced 
many  instances  of  being  obliged  by  better  information, 
or  fuller  consideration,  to  change  opinions  even  on 
important  subjects  which  I  once  thought  right,  but 
found  to  be  otherwise.  It  is  therefore  that,  the  older 
I  grow,  the  more  apt  I  am  to  doubt  my  own  judg- 
ment, and  to  pay  more  respect  to  the  judgment  of 
others.  Most  men,  indeed,  as  well  as  most  sects  in 
religion,  think  themselves  in  possession  of  all  truth, 
and  that  wherever  others  differ  from  them  it  is  so  far 
error.  Steele,  a  Protestant,  in  a  dedication  tells  the 
Pope  that  the  only  difference  between  our  churches, 
in  their  opinions  of  the  certainty  of  their  doctrines,  is, 
*  the  Church  of  Rome  is  infallible,  and  the  Church 
of  England  is  never  in  the  wrong.'  But  though 
many  private  persons  think  almost  as  highly  of  their 
own  infallibility  as  of  that  of  their  sect,  few  express 
it  so  naturally  as  a  certain  French  lady  who,  in  a  dis- 
pute with  her  sister,  said,  '  I  don't  know  how  it  hap- 
pens, sister,  but  I  meet  with  nobody  but  myself  that 
is  always  in  the  right  —  //  rCy  a  que  moi  qui  a  toujours 
raison.'  In  these  sentiments,  sir,  I  agree  to  this  Con- 
stitution, with  all  its  faults,  if  they  are  such,  because 
I  think  a  General  Government  necessary  for  us,  and 
there  is  no  form  of  government  but  what  may  be  a 
blessing  to  the  people  if  well  administered;  and  be- 
lieve further,  that  this  is  likely  to  be  well  administered 

348 


THE  CONSTITUTION 

for  a  course  of  years,  and  can  only  end  in  despotism, 
as  other  forms  have  done  before  it,  when  the  people 
shall  become  so  corrupted  as  to  need  despotic  govern- 
ment, being  incapable  of  any  other.  I  doubt,  too, 
whether  any  other  Convention  we  can  obtain  may  be 
able  to  make  a  better  Constitution.  For  when  you 
assemble  a  number  of  men  to  have  the  advantage  of 
their  joint  wisdom,  you  inevitably  assemble  with  those 
men  all  their  prejudices,  their  passions,  their  errors  of 
opinion,  their  local  interests,  and  their  selfish  views. 
From  such  an  assembly  can  a  perfect  production  be 
expected  .?  It,  therefore,  astonishes  me,  sir,  to  find 
this  system  approaching  so  near  to  perfection  as  it 
does :  and  I  think  it  will  astonish  our  enemies,  who 
are  waiting  with  confidence  to  hear  that  our  councils 
are  confounded,  like  those  of  the  builders  of  Babel, 
and  that  our  States  are  on  the  point  of  separation, 
only  to  meet  hereafter  for  the  purpose  of  cutting  one 
another's  throats.  Thus  I  consent,  sir,  to  this  Con- 
stitution because  I  expect  no  better,  and  because  I  am 
not  sure  that  it  is  not  the  best.  The  opinions  I  have 
had  of  its  errors  I  sacrifice  to  the  public  good.  I 
have  never  whispered  a  syllable  of  them  abroad. 
Within  these  walls  they  were  born  and  here  they  shall 
die.  If  every  one  of  us,  in  returning  to  our  constitu- 
ents, were  to  report  the  objections  he  has  had  to  it, 
and  endeavour  to  gain  partisans  in  support  of  them, 
we  might  prevent  its  being  generally  received,  and 
thereby  lose  all  the  salutary  eff'ects  and  great  advan- 
tages resulting  naturally  in  our  favour  among  foreign 
nations  as  well  as  among  ourselves,  from  our  real  or 
apparent  unanimity.  Much  of  the  strength  and  effi- 
ciency of  any  government,  in  procuring  and  securing 

349 


APPENDIX  B 

happiness  to  the  people,  depends  on  opinion  —  on  the 
general  opinion  of  the  goodness  of  the  government  as 
well  as  of  the  wisdom  and  integrity  of  its  governors. 
I  hope,  therefore,  that  for  our  own  sakes,  as  a  part  of 
the  people,  and  for  the  sake  of  posterity,  we  shall  act 
heartily  and  unanimously  in  recommending  this  Con- 
stitution (if  approved  by  Congress  and  confirmed  by 
the  Conventions)  wherever  our  influence  may  extend, 
and  turn  our  future  thoughts  and  endeavours  to  the 
means  of  having  it  well  administered.  On  the  whole, 
sir,  I  cannot  help  expressing  a  wish  that  every  mem- 
ber of  the  Convention  who  may  still  have  objections 
to  it  would,  with  me,  on  this  occasion  doubt  a  little 
of  his  own  infallibility,  and,  to  make  manifest  our 
unanimity,  put  his  name  to  this  instrument." 

He  then  moved  that  the  Constitution  be  signed  by 
the  members,  and  offered  the  following  as  a  conven- 
ient form,  viz.  :  "  Done  in  Convention  by  the  unani- 
mous consent  of  the  States  present  the  seventeenth  of 
September,  etc.  In  witness  whereof  we  have  here- 
unto subscribed  our  names."  This  ambiguous  form 
had  been  drawn  up  by  Mr.  Gouverneur  Morris,  in 
order  to  gain  the  dissenting  members,  and  put  into  the 
hands  of  Doctor  Franklin,  that  it  might  have  the 
better  chance  of  success.  [Considerable  discussion 
followed,  Randolph  and  Gerry  stating  their  reasons 
for  refusing  to  sign  the  Constitution.  Mr.  Hamilton 
expressed  his  anxiety  that  every  member  should  sign. 
A  few  characters  of  consequence,  he  said,  by  oppos- 
ing or  even  refusing  to  sign  the  Constitution,  might 
do  infinite  mischief  by  kindling  the  latent  sparks  that 
lurk  under  an  enthusiasm  in  favour  of  the  Convention 
which  may  soon  subside.     No  man's  ideas  were  more 

3S^ 


J 


THE  CONSTITUTION 

remote  from  the  plan  than  his  own  were  known  to 
be ;  but  is  it  possible  to  deliberate  between  anarchy  and 
convulsion  on  one  side,  and  the  chance  of  good  to 
be  expected  from  the  plan  on  the  other  ?  This  dis- 
cussion concluded,  the  Convention  voted  that  its 
journal  and  other  papers  should  be  retained  by  the 
President,  subject  to  the  order  of  Congress.]  The 
members  then  proceeded  to  sign  the  Constitution  as 
finally  amended.  The  Constitution  being  signed  by 
all  the  members  except  Mr.  Randolph,  Mr.  Mason, 
and  Mr.  Gerry,  who  declined  giving  it  the  sanction 
of  their  names,  the  Convention  dissolved  itself  by  an 
adjournment  sine  die. 

Whilst  the  last  members  were  signing,  Doctor 
Franklin,  looking  towards  the  President's  chair,  at  the 
back  of  which  a  rising  sun  happened  to  be  painted, 
observed  to  a  few  members  near  him  that  painters  had 
found  it  difficult  to  distinguish  in  their  art  a  rising 
from  a  setting  sun.  I  have,  said  he,  often  and  often, 
in  the  course  of  the  session,  and  the  vicissitudes  of 
my  hopes  and  fears  as  to  its  issue,  looked  at  that 
behind  the  President  without  being  able  to  tell  whether 
it  was  rising  or  setting ;  but  now,  at  length,  I  have 
the  happiness  to  know  that  it  is  a  rising,  and  not  a 
setting,  sun. 


351 


APPENDIX  C 

APPENDIX  C 

MAGNA  CHARTA,! 

Or  the    Great    Charter  of  King  John,   granted  June 
15,  A.  D.  1215. 

John,  by  the  Grace  of  God,  King  of  England, 
Lord  of  Ireland,  Duke  of  Normandy,  Aquitaine,  and 
Count  of  Anjou,  to  his  Archbishops,  Bishops,  Abbots, 
Earls,  Barons,  Justiciaries,  Foresters,  Sheriffs,  Gov- 
ernors, Officers,  and  to  all  Bailiffs,  and  his  faithful 
subjects,  greeting.  Know  ye,  that  we,  in  the  presence 
of  God,  and  for  the  salvation  of  our  soul,  and  the 
souls  of  all  our  ancestors  and  heirs,  and  unto  the 
honour  of  God  and  the  advancement  of  Holy  Church, 
and  amendment  of  our  Realm,  by  advice  of  our  ven- 
erable Fathers,  Stephen,  Archbishop  of  Canterbury, 
Primate  of  all  England  and  Cardinal  of  the  Holy 
Roman  Church  ;  Henry,  Archishop  of  Dublin  ;  Wil- 
liam, of  London ;  Peter,  of  Winchester ;  Jocelin  of 
Bath  and  Glastonbury ;  Hugh,  of  Lincoln ;  Walter, 
of  Worcester ;  William,  of  Coventry ;  Benedict,  of 
Rochester — Bishops:  of  Master  Pandulph,  Sub- 
Deacon  and  Familiar  of  our  Lord  the  Pope ;  Brother 
Aymeric,  Master  of  the  Knights-Templars  in  Eng- 
land; and  of  the  noble  Persons,  William  Marescall, 
Earl  of  Pembroke ;  William,  Earl  of  Salisbury ;  Wil- 
liam, Earl  of  Warren ;  William,  Earl  of  Arundel ; 
Alan  de  Galloway,  Constable  of  Scotland;  Warin 
FitzGerald,  Peter  FitzHerbert,  and  Hubert  de  Burgh, 

^  I  have,  by  permission,  reproduced  the  Old  South  Leaflet, 
with  its  notes,  etc.,  in  fiall. 


MAGNA  CHARTA 

Seneschal  of  Poitou  ;  Hugh  de  Neville,  Matthew 
FitzHerbert,  Thomas  Basset,  Alan  Basset,  Philip  of 
Albiney,  Robert  de  Roppell,  John  Mareschal,  John 
FitzHugh,  and  others,  our  liegemen,  have,  in  the  first 
place,  granted  to  God,  and  by  this  our  present  Charter 
confirmed,  for  us  and  our  heirs  for  ever :  — 

1.  That  the  Church  of  England  shall  be  free,  and 
have  her  w^hole  rights,  and  her  liberties  inviolable  j 
and  w^e  will  have  them  so  observed,  that  it  may  appear 
thence  that  the  freedom  of  elections,  which  is  reckoned 
chief  and  indispensable  to  the  English  Church,  and 
which  we  granted  and  confirmed  by  our  Charter,  and 
obtained  the  confirmation  of  the  same  from  our  Lord 
the  Pope  Innocent  III.,  before  the  discord  between  us 
and  our  barons,  was  granted  of  mere  free  will ;  which 
Charter  we  shall  observe,  and  we  do  will  it  to  be 
faithfully  observed  by  our  heirs  for  ever. 

2.  We  also  have  granted  to  all  the  freemen  of  our 
kingdom,  for  us  and  for  our  heirs  for  ever,  all  the 
underwritten  liberties,  to  be  had  and  holden  by  them 
and  their  heirs,  of  us  and  our  heirs  for  ever  :  If  any 
of  our  earls,  or  barons,  or  others,  who  hold  of  us  in 
chief  by  military  service,  shall  die,  and  at  the  time  of 
his  death  his  heir  shall  be  of  full  age,  and  owe  a  re- 
lief, he  shall  have  his  inheritance  by  the  ancient  relief 
—  that  is  to  say,  the  heir  or  heirs  of  an  earl,  for  a 
whole  earldom,  by  a  hundred  pounds;  the  heir  or  heirs 
of  a  baron,  for  a  whole  barony,  by  a  hundred  pounds  ; 
the  heir  or  heirs  of  a  knight,  for  a  whole  knight's  fee, 
by  a  hundred  shillings  at  most  ;  and  whoever  oweth 
less  shall  give  less,  according  to  the  ancient  custom  of 
fees. 

3.  But  if  the  heir  of  any  such  shall  be  under  age, 

353 


APPENDIX  C 

and  shall  be  in  ward,  when  he  comes  of  age  he  shall 
have  his  inheritance  without  relief  and  without  fine. 

4.  The  keeper  of  the  land  of  such  an  heir  being 
under  age,  shall  take  of  the  land  of  the  heir  none  but 
reasonable  issues,  reasonable  customs,  and  reasonable 
services,  and  that  without  destruction  and  waste  of  his 
men  and  his  goods ;  and  if  we  commit  the  custody  of 
any  such  lands  to  the  sheriff,  or  any  other  who  is 
answerable  to  us  for  the  issues  of  the  land,  and  he 
shall  make  destruction  and  waste  of  the  lands  which 
he  hath  in  custody,  we  will  take  of  him  amends,  and 
the  land  shall  be  committed  to  two  lawful  and  discreet 
men  of  that  fee,  who  shall  answer  for  the  issues  to  us, 
or  to  him  to  whom  we  shall  assign  them ;  and  if  we 
sell  or  give  to  any  one  the  custody  of  any  such  lands, 
and  he  therein  make  destruction  or  waste,  he  shall  lose 
the  same  custody,  which  shall  be  committed  to  two 
lawful  and  discreet  men  of  that  fee,  who  shall  in  like 
manner  answer  to  us  as  aforesaid. 

5.  But  the  keeper,  so  long  as  he  shall  have  the 
custody  of  the  land,  shall  keep  up  the  houses,  parks, 
warrens,  ponds,  mills,  and  other  things  pertaining  to 
the  land,  out  of  the  issues  of  the  same  land ;  and  shall 
deliver  to  the  heir,  when  he  comes  of  full  age,  his 
whole  land,  stocked  with  ploughs  and  carriages,  ac- 
cording as  the  time  of  wainage  shall  require,  and  the 
issues  of  the  land  can  reasonably  bear. 

6.  Heirs  shall  be  married  without  disparagement, 
and  so  that  before  matrimony  shall  be  contracted, 
those  who  are  near  in  blood  to  the  heir  shall  have 
notice. 

7.  A  widow,  after  the  death  of  her  husband,  shall 
forthwith  and  without  difficulty  have  her  marriage  and 

354 


MAGNA  CHARTA 

inheritance  ;  nor  shall  she  give  anything  for  her  dower, 
or  her  marriage,  or  her  inheritance,  which  her  hus- 
band and  she  held  at  the  day  of  his  death ;  and  she 
may  remain  in  the  mansion  house  of  her  husband 
forty  days  after  his  death,  within  which  time  her 
dower  shall  be  assigned. 

8.  No  widow  shall  be  distrained  to  marry  herself, 
so  long  as  she  has  a  mind  to  live  without  a  husband  ; 
but  yet  she  shall  give  security  that  she  will  not  marry 
without  our  assent,  if  she  hold  of  us  ;  or  without  the 
consent  of  the  lord  of  whom  she  holds,  if  she  hold  of 
another. 

9.  Neither  we  nor  our  bailiffs  shall  seize  any  land 
or  rent  for  any  debt  so  long  as  the  chattels  of  the 
debtor  are  sufficient  to  pay  the  debt ;  nor  shall  the 
sureties  of  the  debtor  be  distrained  so  long  as  the  prin- 
cipal debtor  has  sufficient  to  pay  the  debt ;  and  if  the 
principal  debtor  shall  fail  in  the  payment  of  the  debt, 
not  having  wherewithal  to  pay  it,  then  the  sureties 
shall  answer  the  debt;  and  if  they  will  they  shall  have 
the  lands  and  rents  of  the  debtor,  until  they  shall  be 
satisfied  for  the  debt  which  they  paid  for  him,  un- 
less the  principal  debtor  can  show  himself  acquitted 
thereof  against  the  said  sureties. 

10.  If  any  one  have  borrowed  anything  of  the 
Jews,  more  or  less,  and  die  before  the  debt  be  satis- 
fied, there  shall  be  no  interest  paid  for  that  debt,  so 
long  as  the  heir  is  under  age,  of  whomsoever  he  may 
hold  ;  and  if  the  debt  falls  into  our  hands,  we  will  only 
take  the  chattel  mentioned  in  the  deed. 

11.  And  if  any  one  shall  die  indebted  to  the  Jews, 
his  wife  shall  have  her  dower  and  pay  nothing  of  that 
debt ;  and  if  the  deceased  left  children  under  age,  they 

3SS 


APPENDIX  C 

shall  have  necessaries  provided  for  them,  according  to 
the  tenement  of  the  deceased ;  and  out  of  the  residue 
the  debt  shall  be  paid,  saving,  however,  the  service  due 
to  the  lords,  and  in  like  manner  shall  it  be  done  touch- 
ing debts  due  to  others  than  the  Jews. 

12.  No  scut  age  or  aid  ^  shall  he  imposed  in  our  king- 
dom^ unless  by  the  general  council  of  our  kingdom  ;  except 
for  ransoming  our  person,  making  our  eldest  son  a 
knight,  and  once  for  marrying  our  eldest  daughter  ; 
and  for  these  there  shall  be  paid  no  more  than  a  rea- 
sonable aid.  In  like  manner  it  shall  be  concerning  the 
aids  of  the  City  of  London. 

13.  And  the  City  of  London  shall  have  all  its  an- 
cient liberties  and  free  customs,  as  well  by  land  as  by 
water :  furthermore,  we  will  and  grant  that  all  other 
cities  and  boroughs,  and  towns  and  ports,  shall  have 
all  their  liberties  and  free  customs. 

14.  And  for  holding  the  general  council  of  the  kingdom 
concerning  the  assessment  of  aids ^  except  in  the  three  cases 
aforesaid^  and  for  the  assessing  of  scutages^  we  shall  cause 
to  be  summoned  the  archbishops^  bishops^  abbots^  earls.,  and 
greater  barons  of  the  realm^  singly  by  our  letters.  And 
furthermore.,  we  shall  cause  to  he  summoned  generally^  by 
our  sheriff's  and  bailiffs.,  all  others  who  hold  of  us  in  chief 
for  a  certain  day.,  that  is  to  say.,  forty  days  before  their 
meeting  at  least.,  and  to  a  certain  place  ;  and  in  all  let- 
ters of  such  summons  we  will  declare  the  cause  of  such 
summons.    And  summons  being  thus  made.,  the  business  shall 

1  In  the  time  of  the  feudal  system  scutage  was  a  direct 
tax  in  commutation  for  military  service  ;  aids  were  direct  taxes 
paid  by  the  tenant  to  his  lord  for  ransoming  his  person  if  taken 
captive,  and  for  helping  defray  the  expenses  of  knighting  his 
eldest  son  and  marrying  his  eldest  daughter. 


MAGNA  CHARTA 

proceed  on  the  day  appointed^  according  to  the  advice  of 
such  as  shall  be  present^  although  all  that  were  summoned 
come  not. 

15.  We  will  not  for  the  future  grant  to  any  one 
that  he  may  take  aid  of  his  own  free  tenants,  unless 
to  ransom  his  body,  and  to  make  his  eldest  son  a 
knight,  and  once  to  marry  his  eldest  daughter;  and  for 
this  there  shall  be  only  paid  a  reasonable  aid. 

16.  No  man  shall  be  distrained  to  perform  more 
service  for  a  knight's  fee,  or  other  free  tenement,  than 
is  due  from  thence. 

17.  Common  pleas  shall  not  follow  our  court,  but 
shall  be  holden  in  some  place  certain. 

18.  Trials  upon  the  Writs  of  Novel  Disseisin,^ 
and  of  Mort  d'ancestor,2and  of  Darrein  Presentment,^ 
shall  not  be  taken  but  in  their  proper  counties,  and 
after  this  manner  :  We,  or  if  we  should  be  out  of  the 
realm,  our  chief  justiciary,  will  send  two  justiciaries 
through  every  county  four  times  a  year,  who,  with 
four  knights  of  each  county,  chosen  by  the  county, 
shall  hold  the  said  assizes  *  in  the  county,  on  the  day, 
and  at  the  place  appointed. 

19.  And  if  any  matters  cannot  be  determined  on 
the   day  appointed   for  holding   the   assizes   in   each 

^  Dispossession. 

^  Death  of  the  ancestor  ;  that  is,  in  cases  of  disputed  suc- 
cession to  land. 

^  Last  presentation  to  a  benefice. 

*  The  word  Assize  here  means  **  an  assembly  of  knights 
or  other  substantial  persons,  held  at  a  certain  time  and  place 
where  they  sit  with  the  Justice.  *  Assisa  '  or  *  Assize  '  is 
also  taken  for  the  court,  place,  or  time  at  which  the  writs  of 
Assize  are  taken."  —  Thompson' s  Notes. 

357 


APPENDIX  C 

county,  so  many  of  the  knights  and  freeholders  as  have 
been  at  the  assizes  aforesaid  shall  stay  to  decide  them 
as  is  necessary,  according  as  there  is  more  or  less  busi- 
ness. 

20.  A  freeman  shall  not  be  amerced  for  a  small 
offence,  but  only  according  to  the  degree  of  the  of- 
fence ;  and  for  a  great  crime  according  to  the  heinous- 
ness  of  it,  saving  to  him  his  contenement ;  ^  and  after 
the  same  manner  a  merchant,  saving  to  him  his  mer- 
chandise. And  a  villein  shall  be  amerced  after  the 
same  manner,  saving  to  him  his  wainage,  if  he  falls 
under  our  mercy  ;  and  none  of  the  aforesaid  amercia- 
ments shall  be  assessed  but  by  the  oath  of  honest  men 
in  the  neighbourhood. 

21.  Earls  and  barons  shall  not  be  amerced  but  by 
their  peers,  and  after  the  degree  of  the  offence. 

22.  No  ecclesiastical  person  shall  be  amerced  for 
his  lay  tenement,  but  according  to  the  proportion  of 
the  others  aforesaid,  and  not  according  to  the  value  of 
his  ecclesiastical  benefice. 

23.  Neither  a  town  nor  any  tenant  shall  be  dis- 
trained to  make  bridges  or  embankments,  unless  that 
anciently  and  of  right  they  are  bound  to  do  it. 

24.  No  sheriff,  constable,  coroner,  or  other  our 
bailiffs,  shall  hold  "  Pleas  of  the  Crown."  2 

25.  All  counties,  hundreds,  wapentakes,  and  treth- 
ings,  shall  stand  at  the  old  rents,  without  any  increase, 
except  in  our  demesne  manors. 

26.  If  any  one  holding  of  us  a  lay  fee  die,  and  the 

^  "  That  by  which  a  person  subsists  and  which  is  essential 
to  his  rank  in  life." 

^  These  are  suits  conducted  in  the  name  of  the  Crown 
against  criminal  offenders. 


MAGNA  CHARTA 

sherlfF,  or  our  bailiffs,  show  our  letters  patent  of  sum- 
mons for  debt  which  the  dead  man  did  owe  to  us,  it 
shall  be  lawful  for  the  sheriff  or  our  bailiff  to  attach 
and  register  the  chattels  of  the  dead,  found  upon  his 
lay  fee,  to  the  amount  of  the  debt,  by  the  view  of  law- 
ful men,  so  as  nothing  be  removed  until  our  whole 
clear  debt  be  paid ;  and  the  rest  shall  be  left  to  the  ex- 
ecutors to  fulfil  the  testament  of  the  dead  ;  and  if  there 
be  nothing  due  from  him  to  us,  all  the  chattels  shall 
go  to  the  use  of  the  dead,  saving  to  his  wife  and  chil- 
dren their  reasonable  shares.^ 

27.  If  any  freeman  shall  die  intestate,  his  chattels 
shall  be  distributed  by  the  hands  of  his  nearest  rela- 
tions and  friends,  by  view  of  the  Church,  saving  to 
every  one  his  debts  which  the  deceased  owed  to  him. 

28.  No  constable  or  bailiff  of  ours  shall  take  corn 
or  other  chattels  of  any  man  unless  he  presently  give 
him  money  for  it,  or  hath  respite  of  payment  by  the 
good-will  of  the  seller. 

29.  No  constable  shall  distrain  any  knight  to  give 
money  for  castle-guard,  if  he  himself  will  do  it  in  his 
person,  or  by  another  able  man,  in  case  he  cannot  do 
it  through  any  reasonable  cause.  And  if  we  have 
carried  or  sent  him  into  the  army,  he  shall  be  free  from 

^  A  person's  goods  were  divided  into  three  parts,  of  which 
one  went  to  his  wife,  another  to  his  heirs,  and  a  third  he  was 
at  liberty  to  dispose  of.  If  he  had  no  child,  his  widow  had 
half;  and  if  he  had  children,  but  no  wife,  half  was  divided 
amongst  them.  These  several  sums  were  called  *♦  reasonable 
shares."  Through  the  testamentary  jurisdiction  they  gradu- 
ally acquired,  the  clergy  often  contrived  to  get  into  their  own 
hands  all  the  residue  of  the  estate  without  paying  the  debts  of 
the  estate. 

359 


APPENDIX  C 

such  guard  for  the  time  he  shall  be  in  the  army  by  our 
command. 

30.  No  sheriff  or  bailiff  of  ours,  or  any  other,  shall 
take  horses  or  carts  of  any  freeman  for  carriage,  with- 
out the  assent  of  the  said  freeman. 

31.  Neither  shall  we  nor  our  bailiffs  take  any  man's 
timber  for  our  castles  or  other  uses,  unless  by  the  con- 
sent of  the  owner  of  the  timber. 

32.  We  will  retain  the  lands  of  those  convicted  of 
felony  only  one  year  and  a  day,  and  then  they  shall 
be  delivered  to  the  lord  of  the  fee.^ 

33.  All  kydells^  (wears)  for  the  time  to  come  shall 
be  put  down  in  the  rivers  of  Thames  and  Medway, 
and  throughout  all  England,  except  upon  the  sea- 
coast. 

34.  The  writ  which  is  called  prcecipe^  for  the  future, 
shall  not  be  made  out  to  any  one,  of  any  tenement, 
whereby  a  freeman  may  lose  his  court. 

35.  There  shall  be  one  measure  of  wine  and  one 
of  ale  through  our  whole  realm  ;  and  one  measure  of 
corn,  that  is  to  say,  the  London  quarter  ;  and  one 
breadth  of  dyed  cloth,  and  russets,  and  haberjeets, 
that  is  to  say,  two  ells  within  the  lists  j  and  it  shall  be 
of  weights  as  it  is  of  measures. 

^  All  forfeiture  for  felony  has  been  abolished  by  the  3  3  and 
34  Vic,  c.  23.  It  seems  to  have  originated  in  the  destruc- 
tion of  the  felon's  property  being  part  of  the  sentence,  and 
this  * '  waste  ' '  being  commuted  for  temporary  possession  by 
the  Crown. 

^  The  purport  of  this  was  to  prevent  inclosures  of  common 
property,  or  committing  a  **  Purpresture. "  These  wears 
are  now  called  "kettles"  or  "kettle-nets"  in  Kent  and 
Cornwall. 

360 


MAGNA  CHARTA 

36.  Nothing  from  henceforth  shall  be  given  or  taken 
for  a  writ  of  inquisition  of  life  or  litnb^  but  it  shall  be 
granted  freely^  and  not  denied.  1 

37.  If  any  do  hold  of  us  by  fee-farm,  or  by  socage, 
or  by  burgage,  and  he  hold  also  lands  of  any  other  by 
knight's  service,  we  will  not  have  the  custody  of  the 
heir  or  land,  which  is  holden  of  another  man's  fee  by 
reason  of  that  fee-farm,  socage,^  or  burgage  ;  neither 
will  we  have  the  custody  of  the  fee-farm,  or  socage, 
or  burgage,  unless  knight's  service  was  due  to  us  out 
of  the  same  fee-farm.  We  will  not  have  the  custody 
of  an  heir,  nor  of  any  land  which  he  holds  of  another 
by  knight's  service,  by  reason  of  any  petty  serjeanty^ 
by  which  he  holds  of  us,  by  the  service  of  paying  a 
knife,  an  arrow,  or  the  like. 

38.  No  bailiff  from  henceforth  shall  put  any  man 
to  his  law  *  upon  his  own  bare  saying,  without  credi- 
ble witnesses  to  prove  it. 

39.  No  freeman  shall  be  taken  or  imprisoned^  or  dis- 
seised^ or  outlawed^  or  banished^  or  any  ways  destroyed^ 
nor  will  we  pass  upon  him^  nor  will  we  send  upon  hinij 

^  This  important  writ,  or  **  writ  concerning  hatred  and 
malice,"  may  have  been  the  prototype  of  the  writ  oi  habeas 
corpus,  and  was  granted  for  a  similar  purpose. 

^  '*  Socage  "  signifies  lands  held  by  tenure  of  performing 
certain  inferior  offices  in  husbandry,  probably  from  the  old 
French  word  sac,  a  plough-share. 

*  The  tenure  of  giving  the  king  some  small  weapon  of 
war  in  acknowledgment  of  lands  held. 

*  Equivalent  to  putting  him  to  his  oath.  This  alludes  to 
the  Wager  of  Law,  by  which  a  defendant  and  his  eleven  sup- 
porters or  "  compurgators  "  could  swear  to  his  non-liability, 
and  this  amounted  to  a  verdict  in  his  favour. 

361 


APPENDIX  C 

unless  by  the  lawful  judgment  of  his  peers^  or  by  the  law 
of  the  land. 

40.  IVe  will  sell  to  no  man^  we  will  not  deny  to  any 
man,,  either  justice  or  right. 

41.  All  merchants  shall  have  safe  and  secure  con- 
duct, to  go  out  of,  and  to  come  into  England,  and  to 
stay  there  and  to  pass  as  well  by  land  as  by  water,  for 
buying  and  selling  by  the  ancient  and  allowed  cus- 
toms, without  any  unjust  tolls  ;  except  in  time  of 
war,  or  when  they  are  of  any  nation  at  war  with  us. 
And  if  there  be  found  any  such  in  our  land,  in  the 
beginning  of  the  war,  they  shall  be  attached,  without 
damage  to  their  bodies  or  goods,  until  it  be  known 
unto  us,  or  our  chief  justiciary,  how  our  merchants 
be  treated  in  the  nation  at  war  with  us ;  and  if  ours 
be  safe  there,  the  others  shall  be  safe  in  our  domin- 
ions. 

42.  It  shall  be  lawful,  for  the  time  to  come,  for 
any  one  to  go  out  of  our  kingdom,  and  return  safely 
and  securely  by  land  or  by  water,  saving  his  allegiance 
to  us ;  unless  in  time  of  war,  by  some  short  space,  for 
the  common  benefit  of  the  realm,  except  prisoners  and 
outlaws,  according  to  the  law  of  the  land,  and  people 
in  war  with  us,  and  merchants  who  shall  be  treated  as 
is  above  mentioned.^ 

43.  If  any  man  hold   of  any  escheat,^  as  of  the 

^  The  Crown  has  still  technically  the  power  of  confining 
subjects  within  the  kingdom  by  the  writ  **ne  exeat  regno," 
though  the  use  of  the  writ  is  rarely  resorted  to. 

2  The  word  escheat  is  derived  from  the  French  escheoir, 
to  return  or  happen,  and  signifies  the  return  of  an  estate  to 
a  lord,  either  on  failure  of  tenant's  issue  or  on  his  commit- 
ting felony.  The  abolition  of  feudal  tenures  by  the  Act  of 
362 


MAGNA  CHARTA 

honour  of  Wallingford,  Nottingham,  Boulogne,  Lan- 
caster, or  of  other  escheats  which  be  in  our  hands,  and 
are  baronies,  and  die,  his  heir  shall  give  no  other  re- 
lief, and  perform  no  other  service  to  us  than  he  would 
to  the  baron,  if  it  were  in  the  baron's  hand ;  and 
we  will  hold  it  after  the  same  manner  as  the  baron 
held  it. 

44.  Those  men  who  dwell  without  the  forest 
from  henceforth  shall  not  come  before  our  justiciaries 
of  the  forest,  upon  common  summons,  but  such  as 
are  impleaded,  or  are  sureties  for  any  that  are  attached 
for  something  concerning  the  forest.^ 

45.  We  will  not  make  any  justices,  constables, 
sheriffs,  or  bailiffs,  but  of  such  as  know  the  law  of  the 
realm  and  mean  duly  to  observe  it. 

46.  All  barons  who  have  founded  abbeys,  which 
they  hold  by  charter  from  the  kings  of  England,  or  by 
ancient  tenure,  shall  have  the  keeping  of  them,  when 
vacant,  as  they  ought  to  have. 

47.  All  forests  that  have  been  made  forests  in  our 
time  shall  forthwith  be  disforested  ;  and  the  same  shall 
be  done  with  the  water-banks  that  have  been  fenced 
in  by  us  in  our  time. 

48.  All  evil  customs  concerning  forests,  warrens, 
foresters,  and  warreners,  sheriffs  and  their  officers, 
water-banks  and  their  keepers,  shall  forthwith  be  in- 
quired into  in  each  county,  by  twelve  sworn  knights 
of  the  same  county,  chosen  by  creditable  persons  of 

Charles  II.  (12  Charles  II.  c.  24)  rendered  obsolete  this  part 
and  many  other  parts  of  the  Charter. 

^  The  laws  for  regulating  the  royal  forests,  and  administer- 
ing justice  in  respect  of  offences  committed  in  their  precincts, 
formed  a  large  part  of  the  law. 


APPENDIX  C 

the  same  county ;  and  within  forty  days  after  the  said 
inquest  be  utterly  abolished,  so  as  never  to  be  re- 
stored :  so  as  we  are  first  acquainted  therewith,  or  our 
justiciary,  if  we  should  not  be  in  England. 

49.  We  will  immediately  give  up  all  hostages  and 
charters  delivered  unto  us  by  our  English  subjects,  as 
securities  for  their  keeping  the  peace,  and  yielding  us 
faithful  service. 

50.  We  will  entirely  remove  from  their  bailiwicks 
the  relations  of  Gerard  de  Atheyes,  so  that  for  the 
future  they  shall  have  no  bailiwick  in  England  ;  we 
will  also  remove  Engelard  de  Cygony,  Andrew,  Peter, 
and  Gyon,  from  the  Chancery  ;  Gyon  de  Cygony, 
Geoffrey  de  Martyn,  and  his  brothers ;  Philip  Mark, 
and  his  brothers,  and  his  nephew,  Geoffrey,  and  their 
whole  retinue. 

51.  As  soon  as  peace  is  restored,  we  will  send  out 
of  the  kingdom  all  foreign  knights,  cross-bowmen,  and 
stipendiaries,  who  are  come  with  horses  and  arms  to 
the  molestation  of  our  people. 

52.  If  any  one  has  been  dispossessed  or  deprived 
by  us,  without  the  lawful  judgment  of  his  peers,  of 
his  lands,  castles,  liberties,  or  right,  we  will  forthwith 
restore  them  to  him  ;  and  if  any  dispute  arise  upon  this 
head,  let  the  matter  be  decided  by  the  five-and-twenty 
barons  hereafter  mentioned,  for  the  preservation  of  the 
peace.  And  for  all  those  things  of  which  any  person 
has,  without  the  lawful  judgment  of  his  peers,  been 
dispossessed  or  deprived,  either  by  our  father  King 
Henry,  or  our  brother  King  Richard,  and  which*  we 
have  in  our  hands,  or  are  possessed  by  others,  and  we 
are  bound  to  warrant  and  make  good,  we  shall  have  a 
respite  till   the   term  usually  allowed   the  crusaders  j 

364 


MAGNA  CHARTA 

excepting  those  things  about  which  there  is  a  plea  de- 
pending, or  whereof  an  inquest  hath  been  made,  by 
our  order  before  we  undertook  the  crusade ;  but  as 
soon  as  we  return  from  our  expedition,  or  if  perchance 
we  tarry  at  home  and  do  not  make  our  expedition,  we 
will  immediately  cause  full  justice  to  be  administered 
therein. 

53.  The  same  respite  we  shall  have,  and  in  the 
same  manner,  about  administering  justice,  disafforest- 
ing or  letting  continue  the  forests,  which  Henry  our 
father,  and  our  brother  Richard,  have  afforested ;  and 
the  same  concerning  the  wardship  of  the  lands  which 
are  in  another's  fee,  but  the  wardship  of  which  we 
have  hitherto  had,  by  reason  of  a  fee  held  of  us  by 
knight's  service ;  and  for  the  abbeys  founded  in  any 
other  fee  than  our  own,  in  which  the  lord  of  the  fee 
says  he  has  a  right  ;  and  when  we  return  from  our 
expedition,  or  if  we  tarry  at  home,  and  do  not  make 
our  expedition,  we  will  immediately  do  full  justice  to 
all  the  complainants  in  this  behalf. 

54.  No  man  shall  be  taken  or  imprisoned  upon  the 
appeal  ^  of  a  woman,  for  the  death  of  any  other  than 
her  husband. 

55.  All  unjust  and  illegal  finds  made  by  us,  and  all 
amerciaments  imposed  unjustly  and  contrary  to  the 
law  of  the  land,  shall  be  entirely  given  up,  or  else  be 

^  An  ^ppea/ here  mezns  an  "  accusau'on."  The  appeal 
here  mentioned  was  a  suit  for  a  penalty  in  which  the  plaintiff 
was  a  relation  who  had  suffered  through  a  murder  or  man- 
slaughter. One  of  the  incidents  of  this  "  Appeal  of  Death" 
was  the  Trial  by  Battle.  These  Appeals  and  Trial  by  Bat- 
tle were  not  abolished  before  the  passing  of  the  Act  59  Geo. 
III.,  c.  46. 

3^5 


APPENDIX  C 

left  to  the  decision  of  the  five-and-twenty  barons  here- 
after mentioned  for  the  preservation  of  the  peace,  or 
of  the  major  part  of  them,  together  with  the  aforesaid 
Stephen,  Archbishop  of  Canterbury,  if  he  can  be  pre- 
sent, and  others  whom  he  shall  think  fit  to  invite ;  and 
if  he  cannot  be  present,  the  business  shall  notwith- 
standing go  on  without  him  ;  but  so  that  if  one  or  more 
of  the  aforesaid  five-and-twenty  barons  be  plaintiffs  in 
the  same  cause,  they  shall  be  set  aside  as  to  what  con- 
cerns this  particular  affair,  and  others  be  chosen  in 
their  room,  out  of  the  said  five-and-twenty,  and  sworn 
by  the  rest  to  decide  the  matter. 

56.  If  we  have  disseised  or  dispossessed  the  Welsh 
of  any  lands,  liberties,  or  other  things,  without  the 
legal  judgment  of  their  peers,  either  in  England  or  in 
Wales,  they  shall  be  immediately  restored  to  them  ; 
and  if  any  dispute  arise  upon  this  head,  the  matter 
shall  be  determined  in  the  Marches  by  the  judgment 
of  their  peers  ;  for  tenements  in  England  according 
to  the  law  of  England,  for  tenements  in  Wales  ac- 
cording to  the  law  of  Wales,  for  tenements  of  the 
Marches  according  to  the  law  of  the  Marches  :  the 
same  shall  the  Welsh  do  to  us  and  our  subjects. 

57.  As  for  all  those  things  of  which  a  Welshman 
hath,  without  the  lawful  judgment  of  his  peers,  been 
disseised  or  deprived  of  by  King  Henry  our  father,  or 
our  brother  King  Richard,  and  which  we  either  have  in 
our  hands  or  others  are  possessed  of,  and  we  are  obliged 
to  warrant  it,  we  shall  have  a  respite  till  the  time  gen- 
erally allowed  the  crusaders  ;  excepting  those  things 
about  which  a  suit  is  depending,  or  whereof  an  inquest 
has  been  made  by  our  order,  before  we  undertook  the 
crusade ;  but  when  we  return,  or  if  we  stay  at  home 


MAGNA  CHARTA 

without  performing  our  expedition,  we  will  immedi- 
ately do  them  full  justice  according  to  the  laws  of  the 
Welsh  and  of  the  parts  before  mentioned. 

58.  We  will  without  delay  dismiss  the  son  of 
Llewellin,  and  all  the  Welsh  hostages,  and  release 
them  from  the  engagements  they  have  entered  into 
with  us  for  the  preservation  of  the  peace. 

59.  We  will  treat  with  Alexander,  King  of  Scots, 
concerning  the  restoring  his  sisters  and  hostages,  and 
his  right  and  liberties,  in  the  same  form  and  manner 
as  we  shall  do  to  the  rest  of  our  barons  of  England ; 
unless  by  the  charters  which  we  have  from  his  father, 
William,  late  King  of  Scots,  it  ought  to  be  otherwise ; 
and  this  shall  be  left  to  the  determination  of  his  peers 
in  our  court. 

60.  All  the  aforesaid  customs  and  liberties,  which 
we  have  granted  to  be  holden  in  our  kingdom,  as 
much  as  it  belongs  to  us,  all  people  of  our  kingdom, 
as  well  clergy  as  laity,  shall  observe,  as  far  as  they 
are  concerned,  towards  their  dependents. 

61.  And  whereas,  for  the  honour  of  God  and  the 
amendment  of  our  kingdom,  and  for  the  better  quiet- 
ing the  discord  that  has  arisen  between  us  and  our 
barons,  we  have  granted  all  these  things  aforesaid ; 
willing  to  render  them  firm  and  lasting,  we  do  give 
and  grant  our  subjects  the  underwritten  security, 
namely  that  the  barons  may  choose  five-and-twenty 
barons  of  the  kingdom,  whom  they  think  convenient ; 
who  shall  take  care,  with  all  their  might,  to  hold  and 
observe,  and  cause  to  be  observed,  the  peace  and  liber- 
ties we  have  granted  them,  and  by  this  our  present 
Charter  confirmed  in  this  manner ;  that  is  to  say,  that 
if  we,  our  justiciary,  our  bailiffs,  or  any  of  our  officers> 

367 


APPENDIX  C 

shall  in  any  circumstance  have  failed  in  the  perform- 
ance of  them  towards  any  person,  or  shall  have  broken 
through  any  of  these  articles  of  peace  and  security,  and 
the  offence  be  notified  to  four  barons  chosen  out  of  the 
five-and-twenty  before  mentioned,  the  said  four  barons 
shall  repair  to  us,  or  our  justiciary,  if  we  are  out  of 
the  realm,  and,  laying  open  the  grievance,  shall  peti- 
tion to  have  it  redressed  without  delay :  and  if  it  be 
not  redressed  by  us,  or  if  we  should  chance  to  be  out 
of  the  realm,  if  it  should  not  be  redressed  by  our  jus- 
ticiary within  forty  days,  reckoning  from  the  time  it 
has  been  notified  to  us,  or  to  our  justiciary  (if  we 
should  be  out  of  the  realm),  the  four  barons  aforesaid 
shall  lay  the  cause  before  the  rest  of  the  five-and- 
twenty  barons  ;  and  the  said  five-and-twenty  barons, 
together  with  the  community  of  the  whole  kingdom, 
shall  distrain  and  distress  us  in  all  the  ways  in  which 
they  shall  be  able,  by  seizing  our  castles,  lands,  pos- 
sessions, and  in  any  other  manner  they  can,  till  the 
grievance  is  redressed,  according  to  their  pleasure ; 
saving  harmless  our  own  person,  and  the  persons  of 
our  Queen  and  children  ;  and  when  it  is  redressed, 
they  shall  behave  to  us  as  before.  And  any  person 
whatsoever  in  the  kingdom  may  swear  that  he  will 
obey  the  orders  of  the  five-and-twenty  barons  afore- 
said in  the  execution  of  the  premises,  and  will  distress 
us,  jointly  with  them,  to  the  utmost  of  his  power ; 
and  we  give  public  and  free  liberty  to  any  one  that 
shall  please  to  swear  to  this,  and  never  will  hinder 
any  person  from  taking  the  same  oath. 

62.  As  for  all  those  of  our  subjects  who  will  not, 
of  their  own  accord,  swear  to  join  the  five-and-twenty 
barons  in  distraining  and  distressing  us,  we  will  issue 
368 


MAGNA  CHARTA 

orders  to  make  them  take  the  same  oath  as  aforesaid. 
And  if  any  one  of  the  five-and-twenty  barons  dies,  or 
goes  out  of  the  kingdom,  or  is  hindered  any  other  way 
from  carrying  the  things  aforesaid  into  execution,  the 
rest  of  the  said  five-and-twenty  barons  may  choose 
another  in  his  room,  at  their  discretion,  who  shall  be 
sworn  in  like  manner  as  the  rest.  In  all  things  that  are 
committed  to  the  execution  of  these  five-and-twenty 
barons,  if,  when  they  are  all  assembled  together,  they 
should  happen  to  disagree  about  any  matter,  and  some 
of  them,  when  summoned,  will  not  or  cannot  come, 
whatever  is  agreed  upon,  or  enjoined,  by  the  major 
part  of  those  that  are  present  shall  be  reputed  as  firm 
and  valid  as  if  all  the  five-and-twenty  had  given  their 
consent ;  and  the  aforesaid  five-and-twenty  shall 
swear  that  all  the  premises  they  shall  faithfully  ob- 
serve, and  cause  with  all  their  power  to  be  observed. 
And  we  will  procure  nothing  from  any  one,  by  our- 
selves nor  by  another,  whereby  any  of  these  conces- 
sions and  liberties  may  be  revoked  or  lessened  ;  and 
if  any  such  thing  shall  have  been  obtained,  let  it  be 
null  and  void  ;  neither  will  we  ever  make  use  of  it 
either  by  ourselves  or  any  other.  And  all  the  ill-will, 
indignations,  and  rancours  that  have  arisen  between 
us  and  our  subjects,  of  the  clergy  and  laity,  from  the 
first  breaking  out  of  the  dissensions  between  us,  we 
do  fully  remit  and  forgive;  moreover,  all  trespasses 
occasioned  by  the  said  dissensions,  from  Easter  in  the 
sixteenth  year  of  our  reign  till  the  restoration  of  peace 
and  tranquillity,  we  hereby  entirely  remit  to  all,  both 
clergy  and  laity,  and  as  far  as  in  us  lies  do  fully  for- 
give. We  have,  moreover,  caused  to  be  made  for 
them  the  letters  patent  testimonial  of  Stephen,  Lord 

369 


APPENDIX  C 

Archbishop  of  Canterbury,  Henry,  Lord  Archbishop 
of  Dublin,  and  the  bishops  aforesaid,  as  also  of  Mas- 
ter Pandulph,  for  the  security  and  concessions  afore- 
said. 

63.  Wherefore  we  will  and  firmly  enjoin,  that  the 
Church  of  England  be  free,  and  that  all  men  in  our 
kingdom  have  and  hold  all  the  aforesaid  liberties, 
rights,  and  concessions,  truly  and  peaceably,  freely 
and  quietly,  fully  and  wholly  to  themselves  and  their 
heirs,  of  us  and  our  heirs,  in  all  things  and  places, 
forever,  as  is  aforesaid.  It  is  also  sworn,  as  well  on 
our  part  as  on  the  part  of  the  barons,  that  all  the 
things  aforesaid  shall  be  observed  in  good  faith,  and 
without  evil  subtilty.  Given  under  our  hand,  in  the 
presence  of  the  witnesses  above  named,  and  many 
others,  in  the  meadow  called  Runingmede,  between 
Windsor  and  Staines,  the  15th  day  of  June,  in  the 
1 7th  year  of  our  reign. 


The  translation  here  given  is  that  published  in  Sheldon 
Amos' s  work  on  The  English  Constitution.  The  translation 
given  by  Sir  E.  Creasy  was  chiefly  followed  in  this,  but  it 
was  collated  with  another,  accurate  translation  by  Mr.  Richard 
Thompson,  accompanying  his  Historical  Essay  on  Magna 
Charta,  published  in  1829,  and  also  with  the  Latin  text. 
*'  The  explanation  of  the  whole  Charter,  "observes  Mr.  Amos, 
"  must  be  sought  chiefly  in  detailed  accounts  of  the  Feudal 
system  in  England,  as  explained  in  such  works  as  those  of 
Stubbs,  Hallam,  and  Blackstone.  The  scattered  notes  here 
introduced  have  only  for  their  purpose  to  elucidate  the  most 
unusual  and  perplexing  expressions.  The  Charter  printed  in 
the  Statute  Book  is  that  issued  in  the  ninth  year  of  Henry 
III.,  which  is  also  the  one  specially  confirmed  by  the  Char- 


MAGNA  CHARTA 

ter  of  Edward  I.  The  Charter  of  Henry  III.  differs  in 
some  (generally)  insignificant  points  from  that  of  John.  The 
most  important  difference  is  the  omission  in  the  later  Char- 
ter of  the  14th  and  15th  Articles  of  John's  Charter,  by 
which  the  King  is  restricted  from  levying  aids  beyond  the 
three  ordinary  ones,  without  the  assent  of  the  *  Common 
Council  of  the  Kingdom,'  and  provision  is  made  for  summon- 
ing it.  This  passage  is  restored  by  Edward  I.  Magna 
Charta  has  been  solemnly  confirmed  upwards  of  thirty 
times."  See  the  chapter  on  the  Great  Charter,  in  Green's 
History  of  the  E?iglish  People.  See  also  Stubbs's  Documents 
Illustrative  of  English  History.  '*  The  whole  of  the  con- 
stitutional history  of  England,"  says  Stubbs,  "is  a  commen- 
tary on  this  Charter,  the  illustration  of  which  must  be  looked 
for  in  the  documents  that  precede  and  follow." 


"  CONFIRMATIO  CHARTARUM  "  OF  EDWARD  I. 

1297 

I.  Edward,  by  the  grace  of  God,  King  of  England, 
Lord  of  Ireland,  and  Duke  Guyan,  to  all  those  that 
these  present  letters  shall  hear  or  see,  greeting.  Know 
ye  that  we,  to  the  honour  of  God  and  of  holy  Church, 
and  to  the  profit  of  our  realm,  have  granted  for  us 
and  our  heirs,  that  the  Charter  of  Liberties  and  the 
Charter  of  the  Forest,  which  were  made  by  common 
assent  of  all  the  realm  in  the  time  of  King  Henry  our 
father,  shall  be  kept  in  every  point  without  breach. 
And  we  will  that  the  same  Charters  shall  be  sent 
under  our  seal  as  well  to  our  justices  of  the  forest  as 
to  others,  and  to  all  sheriffs  of  shires,  and  to  all  our 
other  officers,  and  to  all  our  cities  throughout  the 
realm,  together  with  our  writs  in  the  which  it  shall  be 
contained  that  they  cause  the  foresaid  Charters  to  be 


APPENDIX  C 

published,  and  to  declare  to  the  people  that  we  have 
confirmed  them  in  all  points  ;  and  that  our  justices, 
sheriffs,  mayors,  and  other  ministers,  which  under  us 
have  the  laws  of  our  land  to  guide,  shall  allow  the 
said  Charters  pleaded  before  them  in  judgment  in  all 
their  points  ;  that  is  to  wit,  the  Great  Charter  as  the 
common  law,  and  the  Charter  of  the  Forest  accord- 
ing to  the  assize  of  the  Forest,  for  the  wealth  of  our 
realm. 

II.  And  we  will  that  if  any  judgment  be  given  from 
henceforth,  contrary  to  the  points  of  the  Charters 
aforesaid,  by  the  justices  or  by  any  other  our  minis- 
ters that  hold  plea  before  them  against  the  points  of  the 
Charters,  it  shall  be  undone  and  holden  for  naught. 

III.  And  we  will  that  the  same  Charters  shall  be 
sent  under  our  seal  to  cathedral  churches  throughout 
our  realm,  there  to  remain,  and  shall  be  read  before 
the  people  two  times  by  the  year. 

IV.  And  that  all  archbishops  and  bishops  shall  pro- 
nounce the  sentence  of  great  excommunication  against 
all  those  that  by  word,  deed,  or  counsel  do  contrary 
to  the  foresaid  Charters,  or  that  in  any  point  break  or 
undo  them.  And  that  the  said  curses  be  twice  a  year 
denounced  and  published  by  the  prelates  aforesaid. 
And  if  the  prelates  or  any  of  them  be  remiss  in  the 
denunciation  of  the  said  sentences,  the  Archbishops 
of  Canterbury  and  York  for  the  time  being,  as  is  fit- 
ting, shall  compel  and  distrain  them  to  make  that  de- 
nunciation in  form  aforesaid. 

V.  And  for  so  much  as  divers  people  of  our  realm 
are  in  fear  that  the  aids  and  tasks  which  they  have 
given  to  us  beforetime  towards  our  wars  and  other 
business,  of  their  own  grant  and  goodwill,  howsoever 


MAGNA  CHARTA 

they  were  made,  might  turn  to  a  bondage  to  them  and 
their  heirs,  because  they  might  be  at  another  time 
found  in  the  rolls,  and  so  likewise  the  prises  taken 
throughout  the  realm  by  our  ministers ;  we  have 
granted  for  us  and  our  heirs,  that  we  shall  not  draw 
such  aids,  tasks,  nor  prises  into  a  custom,  for  anything 
that  hath  been  done  heretofore,  or  that  may  be  found 
by  roll  or  in  any  other  manner. 

VI.  Moreover  we  have  granted  for  us  and  our  heirs, 
as  well  to  archbishops,  bishops,  abbots,  priors,  and 
other  folk  of  holy  Church,  as  also  to  earls,  barons, 
and  to  all  the  commonalty  of  the  land,  that  for  no 
business  from  henceforth  will  we  take  such  manner 
of  aids,  tasks,  nor  prises  but  by  the  common  consent 
of  the  realm,  and  for  the  common  profit  thereof,  sav- 
ing the  ancient  aids  and  prises  due  and  accustomed. 

VII.  And  for  so  much  as  the  more  part  of  the 
commonalty  of  the  realm  find  themselves  sore  grieved 
with  the  matelote  of  wools,  that  is  to  wit,  a  toll  of 
forty  shillings  for  every  sack  of  wool,  and  have  made 
petition  to  us  to  release  the  same  ;  we,  at  their  re- 
quests, have  clearly  released  it,  and  have  granted  for 
us  and  our  heirs  that  we  shall  not  take  such  thing-  nor 
any  other  without  their  common  assent  and  goodwill ; 
saving  to  us  and  our  heirs  the  custom  of  wools,  skins, 
and  leather,  granted  before  by  the  commonalty  afore- 
said. In  witness  of  which  things  we  have  caused  these 
our  letters  to  be  made  patents.  Witness  Edward  our 
son,  at  London,  the  loth  day  of  October,  the  five- 
and-twentieth  of  our  reign. 

And  be  it  remembered  that  this  same  Charter,  in 
the  same  terms,  word  for  word,  was  sealed  in  Flanders 
under  the  King's  Great  Seal,  that  is  to  say,  at  Ghent, 

373 


APPENDIX  C 

the  5th  day  of  November,  in  the  52th  year  of  the 
reign  of  our  aforesaid  Lord  the  King,  and  sent  into 
England. 

The  words  of  this  important  document,  from  Professor 
Stubbs's  translation,  are  given  as  the  best  explanation  of  the 
constitutional  position  and  importance  of  the  Charters  of  John 
and  Henry  III.  See  historical  notice  in  Stubbs's  Documents 
Illustrative  of  English  History,  p.  477.  This  is  far  the 
most  important  of  the  numerous  ratifications  of  the  Great 
Charter.  Hallam  calls  it  **  that  famous  statute,  inadequately 
denominated  the  Confirmation  of  the  Charters,  because  it 
added  another  pillar  to  our  constitution,  not  less  important 
than  the  Great  Charter  itself."  It  solemnly  confirmed  the 
two  Charters,  the  Charter  of  the  Forest  (issued  by  Henry  II. 
in  1 21 7  —  see  text  in  Stubbs,  p.  338)  being  then  considered 
as  of  equal  importance  with  Magna  Charta  itself,  establishing 
them  in  all  points  as  the  law  of  the  land  ;  but  it  did  more. 
*'  Hitherto  the  king's  prerogative  of  levying  money  by  name 
of  tallage  or  prise,  from  his  towns  and  tenants  in  demesne, 
had  passed  unquestioned.  Some  impositions,  that  especially 
on  the  export  of  wool,  affected  all  the  king's  subjects.  It 
was  now  the  moment  to  enfranchise  the  people  and  give  that 
security  to  private  property  which  Magna  Charta  had  given 
to  personal  liberty."  Edward's  statute  binds  the  king  never 
to  take  any  of  these  "  aids,  tasks,  and  prises  "  in  fixture,  save 
by  the  common  assent  of  the  realm.  Hence,  as  Bowen  re- 
marks, the  Confirmation  of  the  Charters,  or  an  abstract  of  it 
under  the  form  of  a  supposed  statute  de  tallagio  non  conce- 
dendo  (see  Stubbs,  p.  487),  was  more  frequently  cited  than 
any  other  enactment  by  the  parliamentary  leaders  who  re- 
feisted  the  encroachments  of  Charles  I.  The  original  of  the 
Confirmatio  Chartarum,  which  is  in  Norman  French,  is  still 
in  existence,  though  considerably  shrivelled  by  the  fire  which 
damaged  so  many  of  the  Cottonian  manuscripts  in  1731. 

374 


MAGNA  CHARTA 


THE  GRANT  OF  THE  GREAT  CHARTER 

<♦  An  island  in  the  Thames  between  Staines  and  Windsor 
had  been  chosen  as  the  place  of  conference  :  the  King  en- 
camped on  one  bank,  while  the  barons  covered  the  marshy 
flat,  still  known  by  the  name  of  Runnymede,  on  the  other. 
Their  delegates  met  in  the  island  between  them,  but  the 
negotiations  were  a  mere  cloak  to  cover  John's  purpose  of 
unconditional  submission.  The  Great  Charter  was  discussed, 
agreed  to,  and  signed  in  a  single  day.  One  copy  of  it  still 
remains  in  the  British  Museum,  injured  by  age  and  fire,  but 
with  the  royal  seal  still  hanging  from  the  brown,  shrivelled 
parchment.  It  is  impossible  to  gaze  without  reverence  on  the 
earliest  monument  of  English  freedom  which  we  can  see  with 
our  own  eyes  and  touch  with  our  own  hands,  the  great 
Charter  to  which  from  age  to  age  patriots  have  looked  back 
as  the  basis  of  English  liberty.  But  in  itself  the  Charter  was 
no  novelty,  nor  did  it  claim  to  establish  any  new  constitu- 
tional principles.  The  Charter  of  Henry  the  First  formed 
the  basis  of  the  whole,  and  the  additions  to  it  are  for  the 
most  part  formal  recognitions  of  the  judicial  and  administrative 
changes  introduced  by  Henry  the  Second.  But  the  vague 
expressions  of  the  older  charters  were  now  exchanged  for 
precise  and  elaborate  provisions.  The  bonds  of  unwritten 
custom  which  the  older  grants  did  little  more  than  recognize 
had  proved  too  weak  to  hold  the  Angevins  ;  and  the  baron- 
age now  threw  them  aside  for  the  restraints  of  written  law. 
It  is  in  this  way  that  the  Great  Charter  marks  the  transition 
from  the  age  of  traditional  rights,  preserved  in  the  nation's 
memory  and  officially  declared  by  the  Primate,  to  the  age  of 
written  legislation,  of  Parhaments  and  Statutes,  which  was 
soon  to  come.  The  Church  had  shown  its  power  of  self- 
defence  in  the  struggle  over  the  interdict,  and  the  clause 
which  recognized  its  rights  alone  retained  the  older  and  gen- 
eral form.     But  all  vagueness  ceases  when  the  Charter  passes 

375 


APPENDIX  C 

on  to  deal  with  the  rights  of  Englishmen  at  large,  their  right 
to  justice,  to  security  of  person  and  property,  to  good  govern- 
ment. *  No  freeman,'  ran  the  memorable  article  that  lies  at 
the  base  of  our  whole  judicial  system,  *  shall  be  seized  or  im- 
prisoned, or  dispossessed,  or  outlawed,  or  in  any  way  brought 
to  ruin  ;  we  will  not  go  against  any  man  nor  send  against  him, 
save  by  legal  judgment  of  his  peers  or  by  the  law  of  the 
land.'  *  To  no  man  will  we  sell,'  runs  another,  *  or  deny, 
or  delay,  right  or  justice.'  The  great  reforms  of  the  past 
reigns  were  now  formally  recognized  ;  judges  of  assize  were 
to  hold  their  circuits  four  times  in  the  year,  and  the  Court  of 
Common  Pleas  was  no  longer  to  follow  the  King  in  his 
wanderings  over  the  realm,  but  to  sit  in  a  fixed  place.  But 
the  denial  of  justice  under  John  was  a  small  danger  compared 
with  the  lawless  exactions  both  of  himself  and  his  predecessor. 
Richard  had  increased  the  amount  of  the  scutage  which 
Henry  II.  had  introduced,  and  applied  it  to  raise  funds  for 
his  ransom.  He  had  restored  the  Danegeld,  or  land  tax,  so 
often  abolished,  under  the  new  name  of  *  carucage,'  had 
seized  the  wool  of  the  Cistercians  and  the  plate  of  the 
churches,  and  rated  movables  as  well  as  land.  John  had 
again  raised  the  rate  of  scutage,  and  imposed  aids,  fines,  and 
ransoms  at  his  pleasure  without  counsel  of  the  baronage.  The 
Great  Charter  met  this  abuse  by  the  provision  on  which  our 
constitutional  system  rests.  With  the  exception  of  the  three 
customary  feudal  aids  which  still  remained  to  the  crown,  *  no 
scutage  or  aid  shall  be  imposed  in  our  realm  save  by  the 
Common  Council  of  the  realm  ;  '  and  to  this  Great  Council 
it  was  provided  that  prelates  and  the  greater  barons  should  be 
summ.oned  by  special  writ,  and  all  tenants  in  chief  through 
the  sheriiFs  and  bailiffs,  at  least  forty  days  before.  But  it 
was  less  easy  to  pro\'ide  means  for  the  control  of  a  King 
whom  no  man  could  trust,  and  a  council  of  twenty-four  bar- 
ons was  chosen  from  the  general  body  of  their  order  to  en- 
force on  John  the  observance  of  the  Charter,  with  the  right 
of  declaring  war  on  the  King  should  its  provisions  be  infringed . 


A  PART  OF  THE  BILL  OF  RIGHTS 

Finally,  the  Charter  was  published  throughout  the  whole 
country,  and  sworn  to  at  every  hundred-mote  and  town-mote 
by  order  from  the  King." — Green's  Short  History  of  the 
English  People,  p.  123. 


APPENDIX    D 

A  PART  OF  THE  BILL  OF    RIGHTS 

An  Act  for  Declaring  the  Rights  and  Liberties  of 
THE  Subject,  and  Settling  the  Succession  of  the 
Crown.     1689. 

Whereas  the  Lords  Spiritual  and  Temporal,  and 
Commons,  assembled  at  Westminster,  lawfully,  fully, 
and  freely  representing  all  the  estates  of  the  people  of 
this  realm,  did  upon  the  thirteenth  day  of  February, 
in  the  year  of  our  Lord  one  thousand  six  hundred 
eighty-eight  [o.  s.],^  present  unto  their  Majesties,  then 
called  and  known  by  the  names  and  style  of  William 
and  Mary,  Prince  and  Princess  of  Orange,  being  pre- 
sent in  their  proper  persons,  a  certain  Declaration  in 
writing,  made  by  the  said  Lords  and  Commons,  in  the 
words  following,  viz.  : 

Whereas  the  late  King  James  II.,  by  the  assistance 
of  divers  evil  counsellors,  judges,  and  ministers  em- 
ployed by  him,  did  endeavour  to  subvert  and  extirpate 
the  Protestant  religion,  and  the  laws  and  liberties  of 
this  kingdom  : 

I.  By  assuming  and  exercising  a  power  of  dispens- 
ing with  and  suspending  of  laws,  and  the  execution 
of  laws,  without  consent  of  Parliament. 

^  In  New  Style  Feb.  23,  1689. 

377 


APPENDIX  D 

2.  By  committing  and  prosecuting  divers  worthy 
prelates  for  humbly  petitioning  to  be  excused  from 
concurring  to  the  said  assumed  power. 

3.  By  issuing  and  causing  to  be  executed  a  com- 
mission under  the  Great  Seal  for  erecting  a  court,  called 
the  Court  of  Commissioners  for  Ecclesiastical  Causes. 

4.  By  levying  money  for  and  to  the  use  of  the 
Crown  by  pretence  of  prerogative,  for  other  time  and 
in  other  manner  than  the  same  was  granted  by  Par- 
liament. 

5.  By  raising  and  keeping  a  standing  army  within 
this  kingdom  in  time  of  peace,  without  consent  of 
Parliament,  and  quartering  soldiers  contrary  to  law. 

6.  By  causing  several  good  subjects,  being  Protest- 
ants, to  be  disarmed,  at  the  same  time  when  Papists 
were  both  armed  and  employed  contrary  to  law. 

7.  By  violating  the  freedom  of  election  of  members 
to  serve  in  Parliament. 

8.  By  prosecutions  in  the  Court  of  King's  Bench 
for  matters  and  causes  cognizable  only  in  Parliament, 
and  by  divers  other  arbitrary  and  illegal  causes. 

9.  And  whereas  of  late  years,  partial,  corrupt,  and 
unqualified  persons  have  been  returned,  and  served  on 
juries  in  trials,  and  particularly  divers  jurors  in  trials 
for  high  treason,  which  were  not  freeholders. 

10.  And  excessive  bail  hath  been  required  of  per- 
sons committed  in  criminal  cases,  to  elude  the  benefit 
of  the  laws  made  for  the  liberty  of  the  subjects. 

11.  And  excessive  fines  have  been  imposed;  and 
illegal  and  cruel  punishments  inflicted. 

12.  And  several  grants  and  promises  made  of  fines 
and    forfeitures  before    any  conviction  or   judgment 


A  PART  OF  THE  BILL  OF  RIGHTS 

against  the  persons  upon  whom  the  same  were  to  be 
levied. 

All  which  are  utterly  and  directly  contrary  to  the 
known  laws  and  statutes,  and  freedom  of  this  realm. 

And  whereas  the  said  late  King  James  II.  having 
abdicated  the  government,  and  the  throne  being  thereby 
vacant,  his  Highness  the  Prince  of  Orange  (whom  it 
hath  pleased  Almighty  God  to  make  the  glorious  in- 
strument of  delivering  this  kingdom  from  popery  and 
arbitrary  power)  did  (by  the  advice  of  the  Lords  Spirit- 
ual and  Temporal,  and  divers  principal  persons  of  the 
Commons)  cause  letters  to  be  written  to  the  Lords 
Spiritual  and  Temporal,  being  Protestants,  and  other 
letters  to  the  several  counties,  cities,  universities, 
boroughs,  and  cinque  ports,  for  the  choosing  of  such 
persons  to  represent  them  as  were  of  right  to  be  sent 
to  Parliament,  to  meet  and  sit  at  Westminster  upon 
the  two-and-twentieth  day  of  January,  in  this  year  one 
thousand  six  hundred  eighty  and  eight,^  in  order  to 
such  an  establishment,  as  that  their  religion,  laws,  and 
liberties  might  not  again  be  in  danger  of  being  sub- 
verted ;  upon  which  letters  elections  have  been  ac- 
cordingly made. 

And  thereupon  the  said  Lords  Spiritual  and  Tem- 
poral, and  Commons,  pursuant  to  their  respective 
letters  and  elections,  being  now  assembled  in  a  full 
and  free  representation  of  this  nation,  taking  into  their 
most  serious  consideration  the  best  means  for  attaining 
the  ends  aforesaid,  do  in  the  first  place  (as  their  ances- 
tors in  like  case  have  usually  done)  for  the  vindicating 
and  asserting  their  ancient  rights  and  liberties,  declare : 
1  In  New  Style  Feb.   i,  1689. 


379 


APPENDIX    D 

1.  That  the  pretended  power  of  suspending  of  laws, 
or  the  execution  of  laws  by  regal  authority,  without 
consent  of  Parliament,  is  illegal. 

2.  That  the  pretended  power  of  dispensing  with 
laws,  or  the  execution  of  laws  by  regal  authority,  as 
it  hath  been  assumed  and  exercised  of  late,  is  illegal. 

3.  That  the  commission  for  erecting  the  late  Court 
of  Commissioners  for  Ecclesiastical  Causes,  and  all 
other  commissions  and  courts  of  like  nature,  are  illegal 
and  pernicious. 

4.  That  levying  money  for  or  to  the  use  of  the  Crown 
by  pretence  and  prerogative^  without  grant  of  Parliament^ 
for  longer  time  or  in  other  manner  than  the  same  is  or 
shall  be  granted^  is  illegal} 

5.  That  it  is  the  right  of  the  subjects  to  petition  the 
King^  and  all  cotnmitments  and  prosecutions  for  such  peti- 
tioning are  illegal.'^ 

6.  That  the  raising  or  keeping  a  standing  army  within 
the  kingdom  in  time  of  peace.,  unless  it  be  with  consent  of 
Parliament.,  is  against  law? 

7.  That  the  subjects  which  are  Protestants  may  have 
arms  for  their  defence  suitable  to  their  conditions.,  and  as 
allowed  by  law.'^ 

8.  That  election  of  members  of  Parliament  ought 
to  be  free. 

9.  That  the  freedom  of  speech.,  and  debates  or  proceed- 

1  Compare  this  clause  4  with  clauses  1 2  and  1 4  of  Magna 
Charta,  and  with  Art.  I.  §  vii.  clause  i  of  the  Constitution 
of  the  United  States. 

^  Compare  clause  5  with  Amendment  I. 

^  Compare  clause  6  with  Amendment  III. 

*  Compare  clause  7  with  Amendment  II. 

380 


A  PART  OF  THE  BILL  OF  RIGHTS 

ings  in   Parliament^  ought  not  to  be  impeached  or   ques- 
tioned in  any  court  or  place  out  of  Parliament.^ 

10.  That  excessive  bail  ought  not  to  be  required^  nor 
excessive  fines  imposed;  nor  cruel  and  unusual  punish- 
ments infiicted? 

1 1 .  That  jurors  ought  to  be  duly  impanelled  and  re- 
turned.^ and  jurors  which  pass  upon  men  in  trials  for  high 
treason  ought  to  be  freeholders? 

12.  That  all  grants  and  promises  of  fines  and  for- 
feitures of  particular  persons  before  conviction  are 
illegal  and  void. 

13.  And  that  for  redress  of  all  grievances,  and  for 
the  amending,  strengthening,  and  preserving  of  the 
laws.  Parliament  ought  to  be  held  frequently. 

And  they  do  claim,  demand,  and  insist  upon  all  and 
singular  the  premises,  as  their  undoubted  rights  and 
liberties;  and  that  no  declarations,  judgments,  doings, 
or  proceedings,  to  the  prejudice  of  the  people  in  any 
of  the  said  premises,  ought  in  any  wise  to  be  drawn 
hereafter  into  consequence  or  example. 

To  which  demand  of  their  rights  they  are  particu- 
larly encouraged  by  the  declaration  of  his  Highness  the 
Prince  of  Orange,  as  being  the  only  means  for  obtain- 
ing a  full  redress  and  remedy  therein. 

Having  therefore  an  entire  cojifidence  that  his  said 
Highness  the  Prince  of  Orange  will  perfect  the  de- 
liverance so  far  advanced  by  him,  and  will  still  pre- 
serve them  from  the  violation  of  their  rights,  which 
they  have  here  asserted,  and  from  all  other  attempts 
upon  their  religion,  rights,  and  liberties : 

^  Compare  clause  9  with  Constitution,  Art.  I.  §  vi.  clause  i . 

^  Compare  clause  10  with  Amendment  VIII. 

"  Compare  clause  1 1  with  Amendments  VI.  and  VII. 


APPENDIX  D 

II.  The  said  Lords  Spiritual  and  Temporal,  and 
Commons,  assembled  at  Westminster,  do  resolve,  that 
William  and  Mary,  Prince  and  Princess  of  Orange,  be, 
and  be  declared.  King  and  Queen  of  England,  France, 
and  Ireland,  and  the  dominions  thereunto  belonging, 
to  hold  the  crown  and  royal  dignity  of  the  said  king- 
doms and  dominions  to  them  the  said  Prince  and 
Princess  during  their  lives,  and  the  life  of  the  survivor 
of  them ;  and  that  the  sole  and  full  exercise  of  the 
regal  power  be  only  in,  and  executed  by,  the  said  Prince 
of  Orange,  in  the  names  of  the  said  Prince  and  Prin- 
cess, during  their  joint  lives  ;  and  after  their  deceases, 
the  said  crown  and  royal  dignity  of  the  said  kingdoms 
and  dominions  to  be  to  the  heirs  of  the  body  of  the 
said  Princess ;  and  for  default  of  such  issue  to  the 
Princess  Anne  of  Denmark,  and  the  heirs  of  her  body  ; 
and  for  default  of  such  issue  to  the  heirs  of  the  body 
of  the  said  Prince  of  Orange.  And  the  Lords  Spirit- 
ual and  Temporal,  and  Commons,  do  pray  the  said 
Prince  and  Princess  to  accept  the  same  accordingly. 
.  The  act  goes  on  to  declare  that,  their  Majesties  hav- 
ing accepted  the  crown  upon  these  terms,  the  "  rights 
and  liberties  asserted  and  claimed  in  the  said  declara- 
tion are  the  true,  ancient,  and  indubitable  rights  and 
liberties  of  the  people  of  this  kingdom,  and  so  shall  be 
esteemed,  allowed,  adjudged,  deemed,  and  taken  to  be, 
and  that  all  and  every  the  particulars  aforesaid  shall  be 
firmly  and  strictly  holden  and  observed,  as  they  are 
expressed  in  the  said  declaration ;  and  all  officers  and 
ministers  whatsoever  shall  serve  their  Majesties  and 
their  successors  according  to  the  same  in  all  times  to 
come." 

The  act  then  declares  that  William  and  Mary  "  are 
382 


ORDERS  OF  CONNECTICUT 

and  of  right  ought  to  be  King  and  Queen  of  England," 
etc. ;  and  it  goes  on  to  regulate  the  succession  after 
their  deaths. 

"  The  passing  of  the  Bill  of  Rights  in  1689  restored 
to  the  monarchy  the  character  which  it  had  lost  under 
the  Tudors  and  the  Stuarts.  The  right  of  the  peo- 
ple through  its  representatives  to  depose  the  King, 
to  change  the  order  of  succession,  and  to  set  on  the 
throne  whom  they  would,  was  now  established.  All 
claim  of  divine  right,  or  hereditary  right  independent 
of  the  law,  was  formally  put  an  end  to  by  the  elec- 
tion of  William  and  Mary.  Since  their  day  no  Eng- 
lish sovereign  has  been  able  to  advance  any  claim  to 
the  crown  save  a  claim  which  rested  on  a  particular 
clause  in  a  particular  Act  of  Parliament.  William, 
Mary,  and  Anne  were  sovereigns  simply  by  virtue  of 
the  Bill  of  Rights.  George  the  First  and  his  succes- 
sors have  been  sovereigns  solely  by  virtue  of  the  Act 
of  Settlement.  An  English  monarch  is  now  as  much 
the  creature  of  an  Act  of  Parliament  as  the  pettiest 
tax-gatherer  in   his  realm."  —  Green's  Short  History^ 

P-  673- 

APPENDIX  E 

THE  FUNDAMENTAL  ORDERS  OF  CON- 
NECTICUT 

1638(9). 

The  first  written  constitution  that  created  a  government. 

Forasmuch  as  it  hath  pleased  the  Allmighty  God 
by  the  wise  disposition  of  his  diuyne  p''uidence  so  to 


APPENDIX  E 

Order  and  dispose  of  things  that  we  the  Inhabitants 
and  Residents  of  Windsor,  Harteford  and  Wethers- 
field  are  now  cohabiting  and  dwelling  in  and  vppon 
the  River  of  Conectecotte  and  the  Lands  thereunto 
adioyneing;  And  well  knowing  where  a  people  are 
gathered  togather  the  word  of  God  requires  that  to 
mayntayne  the  peace  and  vnion  of  such  a  people  there 
should  be  an  orderly  and  decent  Gouerment  estab- 
lished according  to  God,  to  order  and  dispose  of  the 
afFayres  of  the  people  at  all  seasons  as  occation  shall 
require ;  doe  therefore  assotiate  and  conioyne  our 
selues  to  be  as  one  Publike  State  or  Comonwelth  ; 
and  doe,  for  our  selues  and  our  Successors  and  such 
as  shall  be  adioyned  to  vs  att  any  tyme  hereafter,  enter 
into  Combination  and  Confederation  togather,  to 
mayntayne  and  p''searue  the  liberty  and  purity  of  the 
gospell  of  our  Lord  Jesus  w'^''  we  now  p''fesse,  as  also 
the  disciplyne  of  the  Churches,  w'^^  according  to  the 
truth  of  the  said  gospell  is  now  practised  amongst 
vs;  As  also  in  o'  Ciuell  Affaires  to  be  guided  and 
gouerned  according  to  such  Lawes,  Rules,  Orders 
and  decrees  as  shall  be  made,  ordered  &  decreed,  as 
followeth :  — 

I.  It  is  Ordered,  sentenced  and  decreed,  that  there 
shall  be  yerely  two  generall  Assemblies  or  Courts,  the 
one  the  second  thursday  in  Aprill,  the  other  the  second 
thursday  in  September,  following ;  the  first  shall  be 
called  the  Courte  of  Election,  wherein  shall  be  yerely 
Chosen  fro  tyme  to  tyme  soe  many  Magestrats  and 
other  publike  Officers  as  shall  be  found  requisitte : 
Whereof  one  to  be  chosen  Gouernour  for  the  yeare 
ensueing  and  vntill  another  be  chosen,  and  noe  other 
Magestrate  to  be  chosen  for  more  than  one  yeare ; 


ORDERS  OF  CONNECTICUT 

p'"uided  allwayes  there  be  sixe  chosen  besids  the 
Gouernour ;  w*^*^  being  chosen  and  sworne  according 
to  an  Oath  recorded  for  that  purpose  shall  haue  power 
to  administer  iustice  according  to  the  Lawes  here  es- 
tablished, and  for  want  thereof  according  to  the  rule 
of  the  word  of  God  ;  w*^**  choise  shall  be  made  by  all 
that  are  admitted  freemen  and  haue  taken  the  Oath 
of  Fidellity,  and  doe  cohabitte  w'^in  this  Jurisdiction, 
(hauing  beene  admitted  Inhabitants  by  the  maior  p''t 
of  the  Towne  wherein  they  Hue,)  or  the  mayor  p''te 
of  such  as  shall  be  then  p'"sent. 

2.  It  is  Ordered,  sentensed  and  decreed,  that  the 
Election  of  the  aforesaid  Magestrats  shall  be  on  this 
manner  :  euery  p'"son  p''sent  and  quallified  for  choyse 
shall  bring  in  (to  the  p^'sons  deputed  to  receaue  the)  one 
single  pap""  w'^'the  name  of  him  written  in  yt  whom  he 
desires  to  haue  Gouernour,  and  he  that  hath  the  great- 
est nuber  of  papers  shall  be  Gouernor  for  that  yeare. 
And  the  rest  of  the  Magestrats  or  publike  Officers  to 
be  chosen  in  this  manner  :  The  Secretary  for  the  tyme 
being  shall  first  read  the  names  of  all  that  are  to  be 
put  to  choise  and  then  shall  seuerally  nominate  them 
distinctly,  and  euery  one  that  would  haue  the  p^'son 
nominated  to  be  chosen  shall  bring  in  one  single  paper 
written  vppon,  and  he  that  would  not  haue  him  chosen 
shall  bring  in  a  blanke  :  and  euery  one  that  hath  more 
written  papers  then  blanks  shall  be  a  Magistrat  for 
that  yeare ;  w*'*'  papers  shall  be  receaued  and  told  by 
one  or  more  that  shall  be  then  chosen  by  the  court 
and  sworne  to  be  faythfull  therein  ;  but  in  case  there 
should  not  be  sixe  chosen  as  aforesaid,  besids  the 
Gouernor,  out  of  those  w*^^  are  nominated,  then  he 
or  they  w'^''  haue  the  most  written   pap'^s  shall  be  a 

3^5 


APPENDIX  E 

Magestrate   or  Magestrats  for  the  ensueing  yeare,  to 
make  vp  the  foresaid  nuber. 

3.  It  is  Ordered,  sentenced  and  decreed,  that  the 
Secretary  shall  not  nominate  any  p'^son,  nor  shall  any 
p'son  be  chosen  newly  into  the  Magestracy  w'''*  was 
not  p'pownded  in  some  Generall  Courte  before,  to  be 
nominated  the  next  Election ;  and  to  that  end  yt  shall 
be  lawfull  for  ech  of  the  Townes  aforesaid  by  their 
deputyes  to  nominate  any  two  who  they  conceaue 
fitte  to  be  put  to  election ;  and  the  Courte  may  ad  so 
many  more  as  they  iudge  requisitt. 

4.  It  is  Ordered,  sentenced  and  decreed  that  noe 
p''son  be  chosen  Gouernor  aboue  once  in  two  yeares, 
and  that  the  Gouernor  be  always  a  meber  of  some  ap- 
proved congregation,  and  formerly  of  the  Magestracy 
w'^'in  this  Jurisdiction ;  and  all  the  Magestrats  Free- 
men of  this  Comonwelth  :  and  that  no  Magestrate  or 
other  publike  officer  shall  execute  any  p''te  of  his  or 
their  Office  before  they  are  seuerally  sworne,  w'^''  shall 
be  done  in  the  face  of  the  Courte  if  they  be  p'sent, 
and  in  case  of  absence  by  some  deputed  for  that  pur- 
pose. 

5.  It  is  Ordered,  sentenced  and  decreed,  that  to  the 
aforesaid  Courte  of  Election  the  seu''all  Townes  shall 
send  their  deputyes,  and  when  the  Elections  are  ended 
they  may  p''ceed  in  any  publike  searuice  as  at  other 
Courts.  Also  the  other  Generall  Courte  in  September 
shall  be  for  makeing  of  lawes,  and  any  other  publike 
occation,  w*^*"  conserns  the  good  of  the  Comonwelth. 

6.  It  is  Ordered,  sentenced  and  decreed,  that  the 
Gou''nor  shall,  ether  by  himselfe  or  by  the  secretary, 
send  out  sumons  to  the  Constables  of  eu''  Towne 
for  the  cauleing   of  these  two  standing   Courts,  on 

386 


ORDERS  OF  CONNECTICUT 

month  at  lest  before  their  seu''all  tymes  :  And  also  if 
the  Gou'"nor  and  the  gretest  p'"te  of  the  Magestrats  see 
cause  vppon  any  spetiall  occation  to  call  a  generall 
Courte,  they  may  giue  order  to  the  secretary  soe  to 
doe  w'^'in  fowerteene  dayes  warneing  ;  and  if  vrgent 
necessity  so  require,  vppon  a  shorter  notice,  glueing 
sufficient  grownds  for  yt  to  the  deputyes  when  they 
meete,  or  els  be  questioned  for  the  same ;  And  if  the 
Gou''nor  and  Mayor  p'"te  of  Magestrats  shall  ether 
neglect  or  refuse  to  call  the  two  Generall  standing 
Courts  or  ether  of  the,  as  also  at  other  tymes  when  the 
occations  of  the  Comonwelth  require,  the  Freemen 
thereof,  or  the  Mayor  p'"te  of  them,  shall  petition  to 
them  soe  to  doe :  if  then  yt  be  ether  denyed  or  neg- 
lected the  said  Freemen  or  the  Mayor  p''te  of  them 
shall  haue  power  to  giue  order  to  the  Constables  of 
the  seuerall  Townes  to  doe  the  same,  and  so  may 
meete  togather,  and  chuse  to  themselues  a  Moderator, 
and  may  p'"ceed  to  do  any  Acte  of  power,  w''^  any  other 
Generall  Courte  may. 

7.  It  is  Ordered,  sentenced  and  decreed  that  after 
there  are  warrants  giuen  out  for  any  of  the  said  Gen- 
erall Courts,  the  Constable  or  Constables  of  ech 
Towne  shall  forthw**^  give  notice  distinctly  to  the  in- 
habitants of  the  same,  in  some  Publike  Assembly  or 
by  goeing  or  sending  fro  howse  to  howse,  that  at  a 
place  and  tyme  by  him  or  them  lymited  and  sett,  they 
meet  and  assemble  the  selues  togather  to  elect  and 
chuse  certen  deputyes  to  be  att  the  Generall  Courte 
then  following  to  agitate  the  afayres  of  the  comon- 
welth ;  w'''^  said  Deputyes  shall  be  chosen  by  all  that 
are  admitted  Inhabitants  in  the  seu'"all  Townes  and 
haue  taken  the  oath  of  fidellity ;   p'"uided  that  non  be 

387 


APPENDIX  E 

chosen  a  Deputy  for  any  Generall  Courte  w"^''  is  not 
a  Freeman  of  this  Comonwelth. 

The  foresaid  deputyes  shall  be  chosen  in  manner 
following  :  euery  p'"son  that  is  p''sent  and  quallified  as 
before  exp'ssed,  shall  bring  the  names  of  such,  written 
in  seu'rall  papers,  as  they  desire  to  haue  chosen  for 
that  Imployment,  and  these  3  or  4,  more  or  lesse, 
being  the  nuber  agreed  on  to  be  chosen  for  thattyme, 
that  haue  greatest  nuber  of  papers  written  for  thlE  shall 
be  deputyes  for  that  Courte  ;  whose  names  shall  be 
endorsed  on  the  backe  side  of  the  warrant  and  re- 
turned into  the  Courte,  w*^  the  Constable  or  Con- 
stables hand  vnto  the  same. 

8.  It  is  Ordered,  sentenced  and  decreed,  that 
Wyndsor,  Hartford  and  Wethersfield  shall  haue 
power,  ech  Towne,  to  send  fower  of  their  freemen  as 
deputyes  to  euery  Generall  Courte  ;  and  whatsoeuer 
other  Townes  shall  be  hereafter  added  to  this  Juris- 
diction, they  shall  send  so  many  deputyes  as  the 
Courte  shall  judge  meete,  a  resonable  p''portion  to  the 
nuber  of  Freemen  that  are  in  the  said  Townes  being 
to  be  attended  therein  ;  w'^'*  deputyes  shall  have  the 
power  of  the  whole  Towne  to  giue  their  voats  and 
alowance  to  all  such  lawes  and  orders  as  may  be  for 
the  publike  good,  and  unto  w'^''  the  said  Townes  are 
to  be  bownd. 

9.  It  is  ordered  and  decreed,  that  the  deputyes  thus 
chosen  shall  haue  power  and  liberty  to  appoynt  a  tyme 
and  a  place  of  meeting  togather  before  any  Generall 
Courte  to  aduise  and  consult  of  all  such  things  as 
may  concerne  the  good  of  the  publike,  as  also  to  ex- 
amine their  owne  Elections,  whether  according  to  the 
order,  and  if  they  or  the  gretest  p*'te  of  them  find  any 

388 


ORDERS  OF  CONNECTICUT 

election  to  be  illegall  they  may  seclud  such  for  p^sent 
fro  their  meeting,  and  returne  the  same  and  their  re- 
sons  to  the  Courte;  and  if  yt  proue  true,  the  Courte 
may  fyne  the  p'ty  or  p''tyes  so  intruding  and  the 
Towne,  if  they  see  cause,  and  giue  out  a  warrant  to 
goe  to  a  newe  election  in  a  legall  way,  either  in  p^'te 
or  in  whole.  Also  the  said  deputyes  shall  haue  power 
to  fyne  any  that  shall  be  disorderly  at  their  meetings, 
or  for  not  coming  in  due  tyme  or  place  according  to 
appoyntment ;  and  they  may  returne  the  said  fynes 
into  the  Courte  if  yt  be  refused  to  be  paid,  and  the 
tresurer  to  take  notice  of  yt,  and  to  estreete  or  levy 
the  same  as  he  doth  other  fynes. 

10.  It  is  Ordered,  sentenced  and  decreed,  that 
euery  Generall  Courte,  except  such  as  through  neg- 
lecte  of  the  Gou^'nor  and  the  greatest  p'^te  of  Mages- 
trats  the  Freemen  themselves  doe  call,  shall  consist 
of  the  Gouernor,  or  some  one  chosen  to  moderate  the 
Court,  and  4  other  Magestrats  at  lest,  w*"^  the  mayor 
p''te  of  the  deputyes  of  the  seuerall  Townes  legally 
chosen  ;  and  in  case  the  Freemen  or  mayor  p''te  of 
the,  through  neglect  or  refusall  of  the  Gouernor  and 
mayor  p''te  of  the  magestrats,  shall  call  a  Courte,  y* 
shall  consist  of  the  mayor  p^'te  of  Freemen  that  are 
p'^sent  or  their  deputyes,  w*^  a  Moderator  chosen  by 
the :  In  w'''*  said  Generall  Courts  shall  consist  the 
supreme  power  of  the  Comonwelth,  and  they  only 
shall  haue  power  to  make  laws  or  repeale  the,  to 
graunt  leuyes,  to  admitt  of  Freemen,  dispose  of  lands 
vndisposed  of,  to  seuerall  Townes  or  p^sons,  and 
also  shall  haue  power  to  call  ether  Courte  or  Mages- 
trate  or  any  other  p''son  whatsoeuer  into  question  for 
any  misdemeanour,  and  may  for  just  causes  displace 

389 


APPENDIX  E 

or  deale  otherwise  according  to  the  nature  of  the 
offence;  and  also  may  deale  in  any  other  matter  that 
concerns  the  good  of  this  comonwelth,  excepte  elec- 
tion of  Magestrats,  w*^^  shall  be  done  by  the  whole 
boddy  of  Freemen. 

In  w"**  Courte  the  Gouernour  or  Moderator  shall 
haue  power  to  order  the  Courte  to  giue  liberty  of 
spech,  and  silence  vnceasonable  and  disorderly  speake- 
ings,  to  put  all  things  to  voate,  and  in  case  the  vote 
be  equall  to  haue  the  casting  voice.  But  non  of 
these  Courts  shall  be  adiorned  or  dissolued  w*'^out  the 
consent  of  the  maior  p''te  of  the  Court. 

II.  It  is  ordered,  sentenced  and  decreed,  that  when 
any  Generall  Courte  vppon  the  occations  of  the  Com- 
onwelth haue  agreed  vppon  any  sume  or  somes  of 
mony  to  be  leuyed  vppon  the  seuerall  Townes  w*^in 
this  Jurisdiction,  that  a  Comittee  be  chosen  to  sett 
out  and  appoynt  w*  shall  be  the  p'^portion  of  euery 
Towne  to  pay  of  the  said  leuy,  p'vided  the  Comittees 
be  made  vp  of  an  equall  nuber  out  of  each  Towne. 

14*^  January,  1638,  the  11  Orders  abouesaid  are 
voted. 

The  Oath  of  the  Gou^nor,  for  the  [p^sent]. 
I  ^.  Wm*  being  now  chosen  to  be  Gou'"nor  w*^in 
this  Jurisdiction,  for  the  yeare  ensueing,  and  vntil  a 
new  be  chosen,  doe  sweare  by  the  greate  and  dread- 
full  name  of  the  everliueing  God,  to  p''mote  the  pub- 
licke  good  and  peace  of  the  same,  according  to  the 
best  of  my  skill ;  as  also  will  mayntayne  all  lawfull 
priuiledges  of  this  Comonwealth ;  as  also  that  all 
wholesome  lawes  that  are  or  shall  be  made  by  lawfull 
authority  here  established,  be  duly  executed;  and  will 

390 


ILLUSTRATE   THE   ACQUISITION   OF   TERRITORY 
^  BY  THE   UNITED   STATES. 


n  1783      

lan  Empire,  France,  and  Spain  . 


SQ.    MILKS 

827,844 

844,804 

03,  with  the  portion  of  Oregon  territory  retained  in  I S46     .         .         .1,171,931 
man   Empire,  Sweden,  Norway,  Denmark,  Belgium,    France,  and 
1,168,787 


in,  1845  •         .         .         . 
,  Italy,  and  Switzerland 


59,268 
58.309 


375.239 

367,583 


an  Cessions,  1S48-53 591,318 

'n  Empire,  France,  and  Spain 603,862 


Alaska,  1867 

Austria-Hungary,  German  Empire,  and  Norway 


577.390 

574.057 


Cuba,  Pnrto  Rico,  Hawaii,  Philippine  Islands,  etc.     1898-gg  .     171.757 
Italy,  with  England  and  Wales 168,974 


3.774,747 
3,9^6,975 


^ 


THE  STATES  CLASSIFIED 

further  the  execution  of  Justice  according  to  the  rule 
of  Gods  word ;  so  helpe  me  God,  in  the  name  of  the 
Lo :  Jesus  Christ. 

The  Oath  of  a  Magestrate,  for  the  p^sent. 
I,  0*  WSH*  being  chosen  a  Magestrate  w'^^in  this 
Jurisdiction  for  the  yeare  ensueing,  doe  sweare  by  the 
great  and  dreadfull  name  of  the  euerliueing  God,  to 
p^'mote  the  publike  good  and  peace  of  the  same,  ac- 
cording to  the  best  of  my  skill,  and  that  I  will  mayn- 
tayne  all  the  lawfull  priuiledges  thereof  according  to 
my  vnderstanding,  as  also  assist  in  the  execution  of 
all  such  wholsome  lawes  as  are  made  or  shall  be  made 
by  lawfull  authority  heare  established,  and  will  further 
the  execution  of  Justice  for  the  tyme  aforesaid  accord- 
ing to  the  righteous  rule  of  Gods  word  ;  so  helpe  me 
God,  etc. 

[Until  1752,  the  legal  year  in  England  began  March  25 
(Lady  Day),  not  January  i.  All  the  days  between  January 
1  and  March  25  of  the  year  which  we  now  call  1639  were 
therefore  then  a  part  of  the  year  1638  ;  so  that  the  date  of 
the  Constitution  is  given  by  its  own  terms  as  1638,  instead 
of  1639.] 

APPENDIX   F 

THE  STATES  CLASSIFIED  ACCORDING 
TO  ORIGIN 

1.  The  thirteen  original  states. 

2.  States  formed  directly  from  other  states. 

Vermont  from  territory  disputed  between  New 
York  and   New  Hampshire,  Kentucky  from 


APPENDIX  F 

Virginia,    Maine    from   Massachusetts,  West 
Virginia  from  Virginia. 

3.  States     from     the    Northwest    Territory    (see 
p.  275). 

Ohio,  Michigan, 

Indiana,  Wisconsin, 

Illinois,  Minnesota,  in  part. 

4.  States  from  other  territory  ceded  by  states. 

Tennessee,  ceded  by  North  Carolina, 
Alabama,  ceded  by  South  Carolina  and  Geor- 
gia, 
Mississippi,    ceded    by    South    Carolina     and 

Georgia. 

5.  States  from  the  Louisiana  purchase  (see  p.  275). 

Louisiana,  North  Dakota, 

Arkansas,  South  Dakota, 

Missouri,  Montana, 

Kansas,  Minnesota,  in  part, 

Nebraska,  Wyoming,  in  part, 

Iowa,  Colorado,  in  part. 

6.  States  from  Mexican  cessions. 

California,  Utah,  Wyoming,  in  part, 

Nevada,  Colorado,  in  part. 

7.  States    from    territory   defined    by    treaty    with 
Great  Britain  (see  p.  275). 

Oregon,  Washington,  Idaho. 

8.  States  from  other  sources. 

Florida,  from  a  Spanish  cession, 
Texas,  by  annexation  (see  p.  276). 


392 


APPENDIX  G 

TABLE    OF   STATES  AND   TERRITORIES 


ijawo  ^asf^  on 

census  of  igoo  to  go 

'nto  effect  in  igo2  —  ig4 

,lS2 

Dates. 

J3 

s 

Names. 

Popu- 
lation 
to 

Area  in 
sq.  m. 

Popula- 
tion, 

-3  3" 

0  '^^ 
0  <S 

3 
I 

sq.  m. 

I  goo. 

0 
U 

I 

sl 

a 

1787,  Dec.  7 

Delaware 

90.1 

2,050 

•84.735 

3 

.2 

Dec.  12 

2 

Pennsylvania 

1393 

45.215 

6,302,115 

32 

34 

3 

Dec.  18 

3 

New  Jersey 

241. 

7>8i5 

1,883,669 

10 

12 

"5 

1788,  Jan.  2 

4 

Georgia 

37-2 

59.475 

2,216,331 

II 

13 

S 

Jan.  9 

S 

Connecticut 

184. 

4.990 

908,355 

5 

7 

u 

Feb.  6 

6 

Massachusetts 

337-3 

8,315 

2,805,346 

14 

16 

April  28 

7 

Maryland 

97-4 

12,210 

1,190,050 

6 

8 

^ 

May  23 

8 

South  Carolina 

43-8 

30.570 

1,340,316 

7 

9 

•o 

June  21 

9 

New  Hampshire 

44.2 

9,30s 

411,588 

2 

4 

"S 

June  25 

10 

Virginia 

43-6 

42,450 

1,854,184 

10 

12 

'5 

July  26 

1 1 

New  York 

147.8 

49,170 

7,268,012 

37 

39 

P< 

1789,  Nov.  21 

12 

North  Carolina 

36.2 

52,250 

1,893,810 

10 

12 

1790,  May  29 

13 

Rhode  Island 

342.8 

1,250 

428,556 

2 

4 

1791,  Mar.  4 

14 

Vermont 

35-9 

9,565 

343,641 

2 

4 

1792,  June  I 

IS 

Kentucky 

53-1 

40,400 

2,147,174 

II 

13 

1796,  June  I 

16 

Tennessee 

48. 

42.050 

2,020,616 

lO 

12 

1803,  Feb.  19 

17 

Ohio 

101.2 

41,060 

4,157,545 

21 

23 

1812,  April  30 

18 

Louisiana 

28.3 

48,720 

1,381,625 

7 

9 

1816,  Dec.  II 

19 

Indiana 

69.2 

36,350 

2,516.462 

13 

•5 

1817,  Dec.  10 

20 

Mississippi 

33-1 

46,810 

1,551,270 

8 

10 

1818,  Dec.  3 

21 

Illinois 

85.1 

56,650 

4,821,550 

2S 

27 

i8ig,  Dec.  14 

22 

Alabama 

34-9 

52.250 

1,828,697 

9 

II 

1820,  Mar.  15 

23 

Maine 

21. 

33,040 

694,466 

4 

6 

• 

1821,  Aug.  ro 

24 

Missouri 

44-7 

69.415 

3,106,665 

16 

18 

o 

1836,  June  15 

2? 

Arkansas 

243 

53,850 

1,311,564 

7 

9 

1837,  Jan.  26 

26 

Michigan 

41. 1 

58,915 

2,420,982 

12 

14 

1845,  Mar.  3 

27 

Florida 

9- 

58,680 

528,542 

3 

5 

1 

1845,  Dec.  29 

28 

Texas 

11.4 

265,780 

3,048,710 

16 

18 

o  • 

1846,  Dec.  28 

29 

Iowa 

39-8 

56,025 

2,231,853 

II 

13 

1848,  May  29 

30 

Wisconsin 

36-9 

56,040 

2,069,042 

II 

13 

•s 

1850,  Sept.  9 

31 

California 

9-3 

158,360 

1,485,053 

8 

10 

:S 

1858,  May  II 

32 

Minnesota 

21. 

83.365 

1,751,394 

9 

II 

'g 

1859,  Feb.  14 

33 

Oregon 

4.3 

96,030 

413,536 

2 

4 

1861,  Jan.  29 

34 

Kansas 

17.9 

82,080 

1,470,49s 

8 

10 

1863,  June  19 

35 

West  Virginia 

38.7 

24,780 

958,800 

S 

7 

1864,  Oct.  31 

36 

Nevada 

•4 

1 10,700 

42,335 

I 

3 

1867,  Mar.  I 

37 

Nebraska 

13-8 

77,510 

1,068,539 

6 

8 

1876,  Aug.  I 

3S 

Colorado 

5-2 

103,925 

539.700 

3 

5 

1889,  Nov.  2  1 

39 
40 

North  Dakota 
South  Dakota 

4-5 

S-2 

70.795 
77,650 

319,146 
401,570 

2 

2 

4 
4 

1889,  Nov.  8 

41 

Montana 

1-7 

146,080 

243,329 

I 

3 

1889,  Nov.  II 

42 

Washington 

7-5 

6g,i8o 

518,103 

3 

5 

1890,  July  3 

43 

Idaho 

1.9 

84,800 

161,772 

I 

3 

1890,  July  10 

44 

Wyoming 

•9 

97,890 

92,531 

I 

3 

1896,  Jan.  4 

45 

Utah 

3.3 

84,970 

276,749 

I 

3 

'1791,  Mar.  3 

Dist.  of  Columbia 

3,981-7 

70 

278,718 

• 

1834,  June  30 

Indian  Territory 

12.5 

31,400 

391,960 

"S 

1850,  Sept.  9 

New  Mexico 

1.6 

122,580 

195.310 

'c  . 

1863,  Feb.  24 

Arizona 

I.I 

113,020 

122,931 

^ 

i868,  July  27 

Alaska 

.1 

590,884 

63,592 

6 

1S89,  April  22 

Oklahoma 

9-9 

39.030 

398,331 

1900,  May  I 

Porto  Rico 

264.3 

3.606 

*953,243 

1900,  June  14 

Hawaii 

23.8 

6,449 

154,001 

1902,  total  House  of  Representatives  386-]-  Senate  go  =  electoral  votes,  476. 
*  By  the  War  Department  census  of  Nov.  10,  1899. 

393 


APPENDIX  I 


APPENDIX  H 


POPULATION   OF  THE  UNITED  STATES 

1 790-1900 

Showing  Percentages  of  Urban  Population. 


Percentage  of 

Date, 

Pop.  of  U.  S. 

No.  of  Cities. 

Pop.  of  Cities. 

Urban 
Population. 

1790 

3,929,214 

6 

131,472 

3-33 

1800 

5,308,483 

6 

210,873 

3-9 

1810 

7.239,881 

II 

356,920 

4-9 

1820 

9,633,822 

13 

474,135 

4.9 

1830 

12,866,020 

26 

864,509 

6.7 

1840 

17,069,453 

44 

1,453,994 

8.5 

1850 

23,191,876 

85 

2,897,586 

12.5 

i860 

31,443,3^1 

141 

5,072,256 

16. 1 

1870 

38,558,371 

226 

8,071,875 

20.9 

1880 

50,155,783 

286 

",318,597 

22.5 

1890 

62,622,250 

443 

18,235,670 

29.1 

1900 

76,303,387 

*5i7 

^4, 703, 709 

32.4 

*  Incorporated  places  of  over  8,000  inhabitants. 


APPENDIX   I 


AN     EXAMINATION     PAPER 
TOMS    CLERKS 


FOR    CUS- 


Applicant's  No 
Applicant's    Declaration. 

Directions. —  i.  The  number  above  is  your  ex- 
amination number.  Write  it  at  the  top  of  every  sheet 
given  you  in  this  examination. 

394 


EXAMINATION  PAPER 

2.  Fill  promptly  all  the  blanks  in  this  sheet.  Any 
omission  may  lead  to  the  rejection  of  your  papers. 

3.  Write  all  answers  and  exercises  in  ink. 

4.  Write  your  name  on  no  other  sheet  but  this. 
Place  this  sheet  in  the  envelope.    Write  your  num- 
ber on  the  envelope  and  seal  the  same. 

Declaration. 

I  declare  upon  my  honour  as  follows : 

1.  My  true  and  full  name  is  (if  female,  please  say 
whether  Mrs.  or  Miss) 

2.  Since  my  application  was  made  I  have  been  liv- 
ing at  (give  all  the  places) 

3.  My  post-office  address  in  full  is 

4.  If  examined  within  twelve  months  for  the  civil 
service  —  for  any  post-office,  custom-house,  or  De- 
partment at  Washington  —  state  the  time,  place,  and 
result. 

5.  If  you  have  ever  been  in  the  civil  service,  state 
where  and  in  what  position,  and  when  you  left  it  and 
the  reasons  therefor. 

6.  Are  you  now  under  enlistment  in  the  army  or 
navy  ? 

7.  If  you  have  been  in  the  military  or  naval  service 
of  the  United  States,  state  which,  and  whether  you 
were  honourably  discharged,  when,  and  for  what  cause. 

8.  Since  my  application  no  change  has  occurred  m 
my  health  or  physical  capacity  except  the  following : 

9.  I  was  born  at ,  on  the day  of 

10.  My  present  business  or  employment  is 

11.  I  swore  to  my  application  for  this  examination 

395 


APPENDIX  I 

as  near  as  I  can  remember  at  (town  or  city  of) , 

on  the day  of ,  19      . 

All  the  above  statements  are  true,  to  the  best  of 
my  knowledge  and  belief. 

(Signature  in  usual  form^ 

Dated  at  the  city  of ,  State  of ,  this 

day  of ,  1 9 

The  questions  are  different  at  each  examination,  but 
the  following  are  in  subject  and  grade  fair  specimens. 
No  other  specimen  questions  can  be  furnished  to  ap- 
plicants. The  different  subjects  are  weighted  accord- 
ing to  their  relative  importance  in  the  examination.  In 
determining  the  general  average  of  a  competitor,  the 
average  on  each  subject  is  multiplied  by  the  number 
indicating  the  relative  weight  of  the  subject,  and  the 
sum  of  these  products  divided  by  the  sum  of  the  rela- 
tive weights  gives  the  general  average. 

(b)  CUSTOM-HOUSE  SERVICE. 

There  are  three  grades  of  general  examinations  for 
this  service,  namely  : 


FIRST  GRADE. 

(Time  aUowed,  6  1-2  hrs.) 

>  id 

SECOND  GRADE. 

(Time  aUowed,  4  houra.) 

>  zi. 

(21 

THIRD  GRADE. 

(Time  alloved,  3  hours.) 

Subjects. 

Subjects. 

Subjects. 

If 

ist —  Spelling 

2d  —  Arithmetic 

3d  —  Letter  writing. 
4th  —  Pentnanship . . 
Sth  —  Copying   from 

plain  copy 

6th  —  Copying  from 

rough  draft 

7th  —  Geography.. . . 

Total 

10 
25 

'S 

15 

10 

10 
'S 

lOO 

ist  —  Spelling 

2d  —  Arithmetic. 

3d  —  Letter  writing.. 

4th  —  Penmanship. . . 

5th  —  Copying  from 

plain  copy 

Total 

20 
20 
20 
20 

20 

100 

ist— Spelling 

2d  —  Arithmetic 

3d —  Letter  writing. 

4th  —  Penmanship . . 

5th  —  Copying  from 

plain  copy 

Xotal 

20 
20 
20 
20 

20 

396 


EXAMINATION  PAPER 

The  first-grade  examination  will  be  given  to  appli- 
cants for  such  deputy  officer  positions  as  may  be  sub- 
ject to  examination,  and  for  clerk  (male  and  female), 
and  day  inspector. 

The  second-grade  examination  will  be  given  to  ap- 
plicants for  the  positions  of  assistant  weigher,  mes- 
senger, and  sampler. 

The  third-grade  examination  will  be  given  to  appli- 
cants for  the  positions  of  watchman,  night  inspector, 
opener  and  packer,  inspectress,  foreman,  janitor,  at- 
tendant, porter,  and  classified  labourer.  Applicants  for 
the  grade  of  boatman  will  be  rated  only  upon  age,  ex- 
perience, and  intelligence,  character  as  a  workman, 
and  physical  condition,  except  in  positions  in  which 
educational  qualifications  are  desired.  In  such  cases 
the  third-grade  examination  will  be  given  in  addition 
to  the  elements  named. 

FIRST  GRADE    CUSTOM-HOUSE   SERVICE    EX- 
AMINATION. 

First  Subject.  —  Spelling.  Spelling  is  dictated  by 
the  examiner.  The  words  are  written  by  the  competi- 
tor in  the  blank  spaces  indicated  on  the  first  sheet  of 
the  examination. 

The  examiner  pronounces  each  word  and  gives  its  defini- 
tion. The  competitor  is  required  to  write  ONLY  THE  word 
and  NOT  its  definition. 

Second  Subject.  —  Arithmetic.  This  subject  will 
embrace  problems  in  fundamental  rules,  fractions,  per- 
centage (interest  and  discount),  and  analysis. 

[N.  B.  —  In  solving  problems  the  processes  should  be  not  merely  indi- 
cated, but  aU  the  figures  necessary  in  solving  each  problem  should  be  given 
in  full.  The  answer  to  each  problem  should  be  indicated  by  writing 
"  Ans."  after  it.] 

397 


APPENDIX  I 

^estion  I.  This  question  comprises  a  test  in  add- 
ing numbers  across  and  finding  the  grand  total. 
There  are  usually  three  columns  of  about  twelve  num- 
bers each  to  be  added.  The  arrangement  of  the 
columns  is  shown  below,  but  only  two  numbers  are 
placed  in  each  column,  being  intended  merely  to  ex- 
plain the  test : — 


3517 
6326 


7169 
5H5 


4931 
676 


Grand  total 


^estion  2.  Multiply  321.6555  by  819I :  from  the 
product  subtract  16042.09 18,  and  divide  the  remain- 
der by  5. 

^estion  j.  What  is  the  value  of  72  yards  of  goods 
weighing  2^  pounds  to  the  yard,  composed  of  5  parts 
of  silk  worth  ^4  per  pound,  3  parts  of  cotton  worth 
;^o.48  per  pound,  and  one  part  of  worsted  worth 
;^i.75  per  pound  ? 

^estion  /}..  The  total  amount  of  duty  on  two  in- 
voices was  ;g409.50.  The  rate  of  duty  on  the  first 
invoice  was  25  per  cent,  and  on  the  second  18  per 
cent.  Had  the  rate  of  duty  on  the  second  been  also  25 
per  cent,  the  total  duty  on  the  two  invoices  would 
have  been  ;^490.    What  was  the  value  of  each  invoice  \ 

^estion  5.  At  the  rate  of  1 5  cents  per  square  yard 
and  30  per  cent,  ad  valorem,  what  is  the  amount  of 
duty  on  38  pieces  of  drugget,  each  24  yards  long  and 
45  inches  wide,  costing  |  of  a  pound  sterling  per 
linear  yard  ?    {£  =  $4.8665.) 

Third  Subject.  —  Letter  writing.    The  competi- 

398 


EXAMINATION  PAPER 

tor  is  required  to  write  a  letter  on  one  of  two  subjects 
given. 

This  exercise  is  designed  to  test  the  competitor's 
knowledge  of  simple  English  composition  and  his  gen- 
eral intelligence.  In  marking  the  letter,  its  errors  in 
form  and  address,  in  spelling,  capitals,  punctuation, 
syntax,  and  style,  and  its  treatment  of  the  subject  are 
considered. 

The  competitor  must  avoid  allusion  to  his  political 
or  religious  opinions  or  affiliations.  The  letter  must 
contain  not  less  than  150  words,  must  be  addressed  to 
the  "  United  States  Civil  Service  Commission,  Wash- 
ington, D.  C,"  and  must  be  dated  at  the  place  where 
the  examination  is  held.  The  examination  number, 
and  not  the  name  of  the  competitor^  must  be  used  for  a 
signature  to  the  letter. 

Fourth  Subject. —  Penmanship.  The  mark  on 
penmanship  will  be  determined  by  legibility,  rapidity, 
neatness,  and  general  appearance,  and  by  correctness 
and  uniformity  in  the  formation  of  words,  letters,  and 
punctuation  marks  in  the  exercise  of  the  fifth  subject 

—  copying  from  plain  copy. 

Fifth  Subject. —  Copying  from  plain  copy.    N.  B. 

—  Paragraph,  spell,  capitalize,  and  punctuate  precisely 
as  in  the  copy.  All  omissions  and  mistakes  are  taken 
into  consideration  in  markins:  this  exercise. 

Make  an  exact  copy  of  the  following  :  — 
Sec.  3.  That  whenever,  in  the  judgment  of  the 
head  of  any  Department,  the  duties  assigned  to  a  clerk 
of  one  class  can  be  as  well  performed  by  a  clerk  of  a 
lower  class  or  by  a  female  clerk,  it  shall  be  lawful  for 
him  to  diminish  the  number  of  clerks  of  the  higher 
grade  and  increase  the  number  of  the  clerks  of  the 

399 


APPENDIX  I 

lower  grade  within  the  limit  of  the  total  appropriation 
for  such  clerical  service :  Provided,  That  in  making 
any  reduction  of  force  in  any  of  the  Executive  De- 
partments the  head  of  such  Department  shall  retain 
those  persons  who  may  be  equally  qualified  who  have 
been  honourably  discharged  from  the  military  or  naval 
service  of  the  United  States,  and  the  widows  and  or- 
phans of  deceased  soldiers  and  sailors.    (19  Stats.,  255.) 

Sixth  Subject.  —  Copying  from  rough  draft.  The 
competitor  is  required  to  make  a  fair  copy,  on  a  blank 
sheet,  of  a  rough-draft  manuscript,  punctuating  and 
capitalizing  properly,  writing  in  full  all  abbreviated 
words,  and  correcting  errors  in  syntax  and  ortho- 
graphy. 

Seventh  Subject.  —  Geography.  This  subject  is 
given  in  the  first-grade  examination  only. 

The  following  are  samples  of  questions  which  were  used 
in  this  examination  :  — 

I.  Name  States  as  follows:  Two  that  border  on 
the  Columbia  River;  two  that  border  on  both  the 
Missouri  and  Mississippi  rivers ;  two  that  border  on 
both  Virginia  and  the  Ohio  River;  two  that  border 
on  New  Jersey  ;  two  that  border  on  the  Savannah 
River.  2.  In  what  State  is  each  of  the  following- 
named  :  Penobscot  Bay,  Corpus  Christi  Bay,  Puget 
Sound,  Pearl  River,  Oneida  Lake.  3.  Name  the 
largest  city  in  each  of  the  following-named  States, 
and  name  the  river  or  body  of  water  on  which  each 
city  required  is  situated :  Connecticut,  Mississippi, 
Nebraska,  Minnesota,  Ohio.  4.  In  what  State  is 
each  of  the  following-named  prominent  cities  located  : 
Racine,  Bangor,  Allegheny,  Charlotte,  Cairo,  Los 
Angeles,  Shreveport,  Fargo,  Evansville,  Ogdensburg. 
400 


NEW  YORK  CORRUPT  PRACTICES  ACT 

5.  In  what  foreign  country,  colony,  or  possession  is 
each  of  the  following-named  prominent  cities  :  Bre- 
men, Buenos  Ayres,  Yokohama,  Cape  Town,  Havre, 
Melbourne,  Adrianople,  Ottawa,  Teheran,  Panama. 

SECOND  AND  THIRD  GRADE  CUSTOM-HOUSE 
SERVICE  EXAMINATIONS. 

The  second-grade  examination  is  similar  to  that  for 
the  first  grade,  with  these  exceptions  :  Arithmetic  em- 
braces problems  in  the  four  fundamental  rules,  com- 
mon and  decimal  fractions.  The  letter  must  contain 
not  less  than  125  words.  Copying  from  rough  draft 
and  geography  are  omitted. 

The  third-grade  examination  is  similar  to  that  for 
the  second  grade,  with  these  exceptions :  In  the  spell- 
ing exercise  the  words  are  less  difficult.  Arithmetic 
embraces  simple  tests  in  addition,  subtraction,  multi- 
plication, division,  and  United  States  money.  The 
letter  must  contain  not  less  than  100  words. 


APPENDIX   J 

THE  NEW  YORK  CORRUPT   PRACTICES 
ACT  OF  1890 

Chap.  94.  —  An  Act  to  amend  Title  Five  of  the  Penal 
Code  relating  to  Crimes  against  the  Elective  Fran- 
chise. 

Approved  by  the  Governor  April  4,  1890.    Passed,  three  fifths  being  present. 

The  People  of  the   State  of  New  Tork^  represented  in 
Senate  and  Assembly ^  do  enact  as  follows  :  — 
401 


APPENDIX  J 

Section  i.  Title  five  of  the  Penal  Code,  entitled 
"  Of  crimes  against  the  elective  franchise,"  is  hereby 
amended  so  as  to  read  as  follovi^s  :  — 

§  41.  It  shall  be  unlawful  for  any  person,  directly 
or  indirectly,  by  himself  or  through  any  other  per- 
son — 

1.  To  pay,  lend,  or  contribute,  or  offer  or  promise 
to  pay,  lend,  or  contribute  any  money  or  other  valua- 
ble consideration,  to  or  for  any  voter,  or  to  or  for  any 
other  person,  to  induce  such  voter  to  vote  or  refrain 
from  voting  at  any  election,  or  to  induce  any  voter  to 
vote  or  refrain  from  voting  at  such  election  for  any 
particular  person  or  persons,  or  to  induce  such  voter 
to  come  to  the  polls  or  remain  avi^ay  from  the  polls 
at  such  election,  or  on  account  of  such  voter  having 
voted  or  refrained  from  voting,  or  having  voted  or 
refrained  from  voting  for  any  particular  person,  or 
having  come  to  the  polls  or  remained  away  from  the 
polls  at  such  election. 

2.  To  give,  offer,  or  promise  any  office,  place,  or 
employment,  or  to  promise  to  procure  or  endeavour  to 
procure  any  office,  place,  or  employment  to  or  for  any 
voter,  or  to  or  for  any  other  person,  in  order  to  induce 
such  voter  to  vote  or  refrain  from  voting  at  any  elec- 
tion, or  to  induce  any  voter  to  vote  or  refrain  from 
voting  at  such  election  for  any  particular  person  or 
persons. 

3.  To  make  any  gift,  loan,  promise,  offer,  procure- 
ment, or  agreement,  as  aforesaid,  to,  for,  or  with  any 
person  in  order  to  induce  such  person  to  procure  or 
endeavour  to  procure  the  election  of  any  person,  or 
the  vote  of  any  voter  at  any  election. 

4.  To  procure  or  engage,  promise  or  endeavour  to 

402 


NEW  YORK  CORRUPT  PRACTICES  ACT 

procure,  in  consequence  of  any  such  gift,  loan,  offer, 
promise,  procurement,  or  agreement,  the  election  of 
any  person  or  the  vote  of  any  voter  at  such  election. 

5.  To  advance  or  pay  or  cause  to  be  paid  any 
money  or  other  valuable  thing  to  or  for  the  use  of 
any  other  person  vi^ith  the  intent  that  the  same,  or  any 
part  thereof,  shall  be  used  in  bribery  at  any  election, 
or  to  know^ingly  pay,  or  cause  to  be  paid,  any  money 
or  other  valuable  thing  to  any  person  in  discharge  or 
repayment  of  any  money,  wholly  or  in  part,  expended 
in  bribery  at  any  election. 

§  41^.  It  shall  be  unlawful  for  any  person,  directly 
or  indirectly,  by  himself  or  through  any  other  per- 
son — 

1.  To  receive,  agree,  or  contract  for,  before  or 
during  an  election,  any  money,  gift,  loan,  or  other 
valuable  consideration,  office,  place,  or  employment 
for  himself  or  any  other  person,  for  voting  or  agree- 
ing to  vote,  or  for  coming  or  agreeing  to  come  to  the 
polls,  or  for  remaining  away  or  agreeing  to  remain 
away  from  the  polls,  or  for  refraining  or  agreeing  to 
refrain  from  voting,  or  for  voting  or  agreeing  to  vote 
or  refraining  or  agreeing  to  refrain  from  voting  for 
any  particular  person  or  persons  at  any  election. 

2.  To  receive  any  money  or  other  valuable  thing 
during  or  after  an  election  on  account  of  himself  or 
any  other  person  having  voted  or  refrained  from  vot- 
ing at  such  election,  or  on  account  of  himself  or  any 
other  person  having  voted  or  refrained  from  voting 
for  any  particular  person  at  such  election,  or  on  ac- 
count of  himself  or  any  other  person  having  come  to 
the  polls  or  remained  away  from  the  polls  at  such 
election,  or  on  account   of  having  induced  any  other 

403 


APPENDIX  J 

person  to  vote  or  refrain  from  voting  or  to  vote  or 
refrain  from  voting  for  any  particular  person  or  per- 
sons at  such  election. 

§  4ii^.  It  shall  be  unlawful  for  any  candidate  for 
public  office,  before  or  during  an  election,  to  make 
any  bet  or  wager  with  a  voter,  or  take  a  share  or 
interest  in  or  in  any  manner  become  a  party  to  any 
such  bet  or  wager,  or  provide  or  agree  to  provide  any 
money  to  be  used  by  another  in  making  such  bet  or 
wager,  upon  any  event  or  contingency  whatever.  Nor 
shall  it  be  lawful  for  any  person,  directly  or  indirectly, 
to  make  a  bet  or  wager  with  a  voter,  depending  upon 
the  result  of  any  election,  with  the  intent  thereby  to 
procure  the  challenge  of  such  voter,  or  to  prevent  him 
from  voting  at  such  election. 

§  4ir.  It  shall  be  unlawful  for  any  person,  directly 
or  indirectly,  by  himself  or  any  other  person  in  his 
behalf,  to  make  use  of,  or  threaten  to  make  use  of, 
any  force,  violence,  or  restraint,  or  to  inflict  or 
threaten  the  infliction  by  himself,  or  through  any 
other  person,  of  any  injury,  damage,  harm,  or  loss,  or 
in  any  manner  to  practice  intimidation  upon  or  against 
any  person,  in  order  to  induce  or  compel  such  person 
to  vote  or  refrain  from  voting  at  any  election,  or  to 
vote  or  refrain  from  voting  for  any  particular  person 
or  persons  at  any  election,  or  on  account  of  such  per- 
son having  voted  or  refrained  from  voting  at  any  elec- 
tion. And  it  shall  be  unlawful  for  any  person  by 
abduction,  duress,  or  any  forcible  or  fraudulent  device 
or  contrivance  whatever  to  impede,  prevent,  or  other- 
wise interfere  with,  the  free  exercise  of  the  elective 
franchise  by  any  voter ;  or  to  compel,  induce,  or  pre- 
vail upon  any  voter  either  to  give  or  refrain  from  giv- 
404 


NEW  YORK  CORRUPT  PRACTICES  ACT 

ing  his  vote  at  any  election,  or  to  give  or  refrain  from 
giving  his  vote  for  any  particular  person  at  any  elec- 
tion. It  shall  not  be  lawful  for  any  employer  in  pay- 
ing his  employees  the  salary  or  visages  due  them  to 
inclose  their  pay  in  "  pay  envelopes "  upon  which 
there  is  written  or  printed  any  political  mottoes,  de- 
vices, or  arguments  containing  threats,  express  or 
implied,  intended  or  calculated  to  influence  the  politi- 
cal opinions  or  actions  of  such  employees.  Nor  shall 
it  be  lawful  for  any  employer  within  ninety  days  of 
general  election  to  put  up  or  otherwise  exhibit  in  his 
factory,  workshop,  or  other  establishment  or  place 
where  his  employees  may  be  working,  any  hand-bill 
or  placard  containing  any  threat,  notice,  or  informa- 
tion that  in  case  any  particular  ticket  or  candidate 
shall  be  elected,  work  in  his  place  or  establishment 
will  cease,  in  whole  or  in  part,  or  his  establishment 
be  closed  up,  or  the  wages  of  his  workmen  be  reduced, 
or  other  threats,  express  or  implied,  intended  or  cal- 
culated to  influence  the  political  opinions  or  actions 
of  his  employees.  This  section  shall  apply  to  cor- 
porations, as  well  as  to  individuals,  and  any  person 
or  corporation  violating  the  provisions  of  this  section 
shall  be  deemed  guilty  of  a  misdemeanour,  and  any 
corporation  violating  this  section  shall  forfeit  its 
charter. 

§  41*2'.  Every  candidate  who  is  voted  for  at  any 
public  election  held  within  this  state  shall,  within  ten 
days  after  such  election,  file  as  hereinafter  provided  an 
itemized  statement,  showing  in  detail  all  the  moneys 
contributed  or  expended  by  him,  directly  or  indirectly, 
by  himself  or  through  any  other  person,  in  aid  of  his 
election.  Such  statement  shall  give  the  names  of  the 
405 


APPENDIX  J 

various  persons  who  received  such  moneys,  the  spe- 
cific nature  of  each  item,  and  the  purpose  for  which 
it  was  expended  or  contributed.  There  shall  be 
attached  to  such  statement  an  affidavit  subscribed  and 
sworn  to  by  such  candidate,  setting  forth  in  substance 
that  the  statement  thus  made  is  in  all  respects  true, 
and  that  the  same  is  a  full  and  detailed  statement  of 
all  moneys  so  contributed  or  expended  by  him,  directly 
or  indirectly,  by  himself  or  through  any  other  person 
in  aid  of  his  election.  Candidates  for  offices  to  be 
filled  by  the  electors  of  the  entire  state,  or  any  divi- 
sion or  district  thereof  greater  than  a  county,  shall  file 
their  statements  in  the  office  of  the  secretary  of  state. 
The  candidates  for  town,  village,  and  city  offices,  ex- 
cepting the  city  of  New  York,  shall  file  their  state- 
ments in  the  office  of  the  town,  village,  or  city  cleric 
respectively,  and  in  cities  wherein  there  is  no  city 
clerk,  with  the  clerk  of  the  common  council  wherein 
the  election  occurs.  Candidates  for  all  other  offices, 
including  all  offices  in  the  city  and  county  of  New 
York,  shall  file  their  statements  in  the  office  of  the 
clerk  of  the  county  wherein  the  election  occurs. 

§  41^.  A  person  offending  against  any  provision 
of  sections  forty-one  and  forty-one-a  of  this  act  is  a 
.competent  witness  against  another  person  so  offend- 
ing, and  may  be  compelled  to  attend  and  testify  upon 
any  trial,  hearing,  proceeding,  or  investigation  in  the 
same  manner  as  any  other  person.  But  the  testi- 
mony so  given  shall  not  be  used  in  any  prosecution 
or  proceeding,  civil  or  criminal,  against  the  person  so 
testifying.  A  person  so  testifying  shall  not  thereafter 
be  liable  to  indictment,  prosecution,  or  punishment 
for  the  offence  with  reference  to  which  his  testimony 
406 


NEW  YORK  CORRUPT  PRACTICES  ACT 

was  given  and  may  plead  or  prove  the  giving  of  testi- 
mony accordingly,  in  bar  of  such  an  indictment  or 
prosecution. 

§  41/".  Whosoever  shall  violate  any  provision  of 
this  title,  upon  conviction  thereof,  shall  be  punished 
by  imprisonment  in  a  county  jail  for  not  less  than 
three  months  nor  more  than  one  year.  The  ofFences 
described  in  section  ^  forty-one  and  forty-one-a  of  this 
act  are  hereby  declared  to  be  infamous  crimes.  When 
a  person  is  convicted  of  any  offence  mentioned  in 
section  forty-one  of  this  act  he  shall  in  addition  to 
the  punishment  above  prescribed,  forfeit  any  office  to 
which  he  may  have  been  elected  at  the  election  with 
reference  to  which  such  offence  was  committed  ; 
and  when  a  person  is  convicted  of  any  offence  men- 
tioned in  section  forty-one-a  of  this  act  he  shall  in 
addition  to  the  punishment  above  prescribed  be  ex- 
cluded from  the  right  of  suffrage  for  a  period  of  five 
years  after  such  conviction,  and  it  shall  be  the  duty 
of  the  county  clerk  of  the  county  in  which  any  such 
conviction  shall  be  had,  to  transmit  a  certified  copy 
of  the  record  of  conviction  to  the  clerk  of  each  county 
of  the  state,  within  ten  days  thereafter,  which  said 
certified  copy  shall  be  duly  filed  by  the  said  county 
clerks  in  their  respective  offices.  Any  candidate  for 
office  who  refuses  or  neglects  to  file  a  statement  as 
prescribed  in  section  forty-one-d  of  this  act  shall  be 
deemed  guilty  of  a  misdemeanour,  punishable  as  above 
provided  and  shall  also  forfeit  his  office. 

§  4.ig.  Other  crimes  against  the  elective  franchise 
are  defined,  and  the  punishment  thereof  prescribed  by 
special  statutes. 

^  So  in  the  original. 
407 


APPENDIX  K 

§  2.  Section  forty-one  of  the  Penal  Code,  as  it  ex- 
isted prior  to  the  passage  of  this  act,  is  hereby  re- 
pealed. 

§  3.  This  act  shall  take  effect  immediately. 


APPENDIX  K 

FORM  OF  AUSTRALIAN  BALLOT  ADOPTED 
IN  MASSACHUSETTS,  1889 

OFFICIAL  BALLOT 


Precinct         ,  Ward 
OF  (city  or  town), 
November         ,  18 

£Fac-Simile  of  Signature  of  Secretary.  3 

Secretary  of  the  Commonwealth, 

SAMPLE   BALLOT,! 

With  explanations  and  Illustration. 

Prepared  by  the  Ballot  Act  League  with  the  appro- 
val of  the  Secretary  of  the  Commonwealth. 

Some  representative  districts  elect  one^  some  two^  and 
a  few  three    representatives  to    the  General    Court. 
^  See  pp.  410,  411. 
408 


FORM  OF  AUSTRALIAN  BALLOT 

Worcester  County  elects,  four  commissioners  of  insolvency 
instead  of  three  as  in  other  counties. 

No  county  commissioners  or  special  commissioners 
will  be  voted  for  in  the  cities  of  Boston  and  Chelsea  or 
the  county  of  Nantucket. 


Forms  for  nominating  candidates  can  be  had  at  the 
department  of  the  Secretary  of  the  Commonwealth. 


Carefully  observe  the  official  specimen  ballots  to  be 
posted  and  published  just  before  election  day. 


409 


APPENDIX  K 


To  vote  for  a  Person,  mark 

a  Cross  X 

GOVERNOR     

Vote  for  ONE. 

OLIVER  AMES,  of  Easton 

Republican.  | 

WILLIAM  H.  EA RLE,  of  Worcester      .... 

Prohibition.  | 

WILLIAM  E.  RUSSELL,  of  Cambridge    .... 

Democratic.  | 

1 

LIEUTENANT-GOVERNOR      .... 

Vote  for  ONE. 

JOHN  BASCOM,  of  Williamstown       .        .                 .         . 

Prohibition.  | 

JOHN  Q.  A.  BRACKETT,  of  Arlington 

RepubHcan.  | 

JOHN  W.  CORCORAN,  of  Clinton             .... 

Democratic.  | 

1 

SECRETARY    

Vote  for  ONE. 

WILLIAM  N.  OSGOOD,  of  Boston 

Democratic.  I 

HENRY  B.  PEIRCE,  of  Abington 

Republican.  | 

HENRY  C.  SMITH,  of  Williamsburg          .... 

Prohibition.  | 

1 

TREASURER  

Vote  for  ONE. 

JOHN  M.  FISHER,  of  Attleborough         .... 

Prohibition.  | 

GEORGE  A.  MARDEN,  of  Lowell          .... 

Republican.  | 

HENRY  C.  THACHER,  of  Yarmouth        .... 

Democratic.  | 

1 

AUDITOR 

Vote  for  ONE. 

CHARLES  R.  LADD,  of  Springfield 

Republican.  | 

EDMUND  A.  STOWE,  of  Hudson  .         .        ,        .        . 

Prohibition.  | 

WILLIAM  A.  WILLIAMS,  of  Worcester 

Democratic.  | 

1 

ATTORNEY-GENERAL 

Vote  for  ONE. 

ALLEN  COFFIN,  of  Nantucket 

Prohibition.  | 

SAMUEL  O.  LAMB,  of  Greenfield 

Democratic.  1 

ANDREW  J.  WATERMAN,  of  Pittsfield 

Republican.  | 

1 

COUNCILLOR,  Third  District    .... 

Vote  for  ONE. 

ROBERT  O.  FULLER,  of  Cambridge        .... 

Republican.  | 

WILLIAM  E.  PLUMMER,  of  Newton  .... 

Democratic.  | 

SYLVANUS  C.  SMALL,  of  Winchester      .... 

Prohibition.  | 

1 

SENATOR,  Third  Middlesex  District 

Vote  for  ONE. 

FREEMAN  HUNT,  of  Cambridge 

Democratic.  1 

CHESTER  W.  KINGSLEY,  of  Cambridge    . 

(  Republican.  1 
1  Prohibition.  | 

i 

DISTRICT  ATTORNEY,  Northern  District 

Vote  for  ONE. 

CHARLES  S.  LINCOLN,  of  Somerville 

Democratic.  | 

JOHN  M.  READ,  of  Lowell 

Prohibition.  | 

WILLIAM  B.  STEVENS,  of  Stoneham   .... 

Republican.  | 

1 

410 


FORM  OF  AUSTRALIAN  BALLOT 


in  the  Square  at  the  right  of  the  name. 


REPRESENTATIVES  IN  GENERAL  COURT 

First  Middlesex  District                    Vote  for  T^VO. 

WILLIAM  H.  MARBLE,  of  Cambridge 

Prohibition.  | 

ISAAC  McLEAN,  of  Cambridge  .... 

.     Democratic.  | 

GEORGE  A.  PERKINS,  of  Cambridge  . 

Democratic.  | 

JOHN  READ,  of  Cambridge        .... 

.     Republican.  | 

CHESTER  F.  SANGER,  of  Cambrid.'^e 

Republican.  | 

WILLIAM  A.  START,  of  Cambridge 

.     Prohibition.  | 

SHERIFF -        . 

Vote  for  ONE. 

HENRY  G.  GUSHING,  of  Lowell      . 

.     Republican.  | 

HENRY  G.  HARKINS,  of  Lowell  .... 

Prohibition.  | 

WILLIAM  H.  SHERMAN,  of  Ayer 

.     Democratic.  | 

1 

COMMISSIONERS  OF  INSOLVENCY 

.    Vote  for  THREE. 

JOHN  W.  ALLARD,  of  Framingham 

.     Democratic.  | 

GEORGE  J.  BURNS,  of  Ayer          .... 

Republican.  | 

WILLIAM  A.  CUTTER,  of  Cambridge      . 

.     Prohibition. 

FREDERIC  T.  GREENHALGE,  of  Lowell  . 

Republican. 

JAMES  HICKS,  of  Cambridge      .... 

.     Prohibition. 

JOHN  C.  KENNEDY,  of  Newton  .... 

Republican. 

RICHARD  J.   McKELLEGET,  of  Cambridge  . 

.     Democratic.  | 

EDWARD  D.  McVEY,  of  Lowell     .... 

Democratic.  | 

ELMER  A.  STEVENS,  of  SomerviUe 

.     Prohibition.  | 

1 

COUNTY  COMMISSIONER 

Vote  for  ONE. 

WILLIAM   S.  FROST,  of  Marlborough       . 

.     Republican.  | 

JOSEPH  W.  BARBER,  of  Sherborn 

Prohibition.  | 

JAMES  SKINNER,  of  Woburn 

.     Democratic.  | 

1 

SPECIAL  COMMISSIONERS    . 

Vote  for  TWO. 

HENRY  BRADLEE,  of  Medford 

.     Democratic.  | 

LYMAN  DYKE,  ot  Stoneham 

Republican.  | 

JOHN  J.  DONOVAN,  of  Lowell 

.     Democratic.  | 

WILLIAM  E.  KNIGHT, of  Shirley 

Prohibition.  | 

ORSON  E.  MALLORY,  of  Lowell      . 

.     Prohibition.  | 

EDWIN  E.  THOMPSON,  of  Woburn     . 

Republican.  | 

1 

1 

411 


APPENDIX  K 


SKETCH   OF   POLLING   PLACE 


SUGGESTIONS  TO  VOTERS 

Give  your  name  and  residence  to  the  ballot  clerk,  who,  on  finding  your  name 
on  the  check  list,  will  admit  you  within  the  rail  and  hand  you  a  ballot. 

Go  alone  to  one  of  the  voting  shelves  and  there  unfold  your  ballot. 

Mark  a  cross  X  in  the  square  at  the  right  of  the  name  of  each  person  for 
whom  you  wish  to  vote.  No  other  method  of  marking,  such  as  erasing  names, 
will  answer. 

Thus,  if  you  wished  to  vote  for  John  Bowles  for  Governor,  you  would  mark 
your  ballot  in  this  way  :  — 


GOVERNOR      

.     Vote  for  ONE. 

JOHN  BOWLES,  of  Taunton 

Prohibition.  |  X 

THOMAS  E.  MEANS,  of  Boston       . 

.     Democratic.  | 

ELIJAH  SMITH,  of  Pittsfield 

Republican.  | 

1 

If  you  wish  to  vote  for  a  person  whose  name  is  not  on  the  ballot,  write,  or  in- 
sert by  a  sticker,  the  name  in  the  blank  line  at  the  end  of  the  list  of  candidates 
for  the  office,  and  mark  a  cross  X  in  the  square  at  the  right  of  it. 

Thus,  if  you  wished  to  vote  for  George  T.  Morton,  of  Chelsea,  for  Governor, 
you  would  prepare  your  ballot  in  this  way :  — 


GOVERNOR       

.     Vote  for  ONE. 

JOHN  BOWLES,  of  Taunton   .         .         .         . 

Prohibition.  | 

THOMAS  E.  MEANS,  of  Boston 

.     Democratic.  | 

ELIJAH  SMITH,  of  Pittsfield 

Republican.  | 

George  T.  Morton,  of  Chelsea 

IX 

Notice  that  for  some  offices  you  may  vote  for  "  two  "  or  "  three  "  candidates, 
as  stated  in  the  ballot  at  the  right  of  the  name  of  the  office  to  be  voted  for, 
e.g.:  "Commissioners  of  Insolvency.  Vote  for  Threb." 

412 


FORM  OF  AUSTRALIAN  BALLOT 

If  you  spoil  a  ballot,  return  it  to  the  ballot  clerk,  who  will  give  you  another. 
You  cannot  have  more  than  two  extra  ballots,  or  three  in  all. 

You  cannot  remain  within  the  rail  more  than  ten  minutes,  and  in  case  all  the 
shelves  are  in  use  and  other  voters  waiting,  you  are  allowed  only  five  minutes  at 
the  voting  shelf. 

Before  leaving  the  voting  shelf,  fold  your  ballot  in  the  same  way  as  it  was  folded 
when  you  received  it,  and  keep  it  so  folded  until  you  place  it  in  the  ballot  box. 

Do  not  show  any  one  how  you  have  marked  your  ballot. 

Go  to  the  ballot  box  and  give  your  name  and  residence  to  the  officer  in  charge. 

Put  your  folded  ballot  in  the  box  with  the  certificate;  of  the  Secretary  of  the 
Commonwealth  uppermost  and  in  sight. 

You  are  not  allowed  to  carry  away  a  ballot,  whether  spoiled  or  not. 

A  voter  who  declares  to  the  presiding  official  (under  oath,  if  required)  that  he 
was  a  voter  before  May  i,  1S57,  and  cannot  read,  or  that  he  is  blind  or  physically 
unable  to  mark  his  ballot,  can  receive  the  assistance  of  one  or  two  of  the  election 
officers  in  the  marking  of  his  ballot. 


I 


INDEX 


Adams,  J.  Q. ,  election  to  presidency 
by  House  of  Representatives,  246 ; 
nomination,  252. 

Adams,  Samuel,  the  "  man  of  the 
town-meeting,"  35  ;  inaugurates 
Committees    of    Correspondence, 

179- 

Agriculture,  conditions  in  New  Eng- 
land, 17;  in  Virginia,  60—62; 
state  commissioners,  188  ;  federal 
department,  263. 

Albany  Plan,  217. 

Aldermen,  of  Boston,  109  ;  of  city 
of  London,  115,  116;  of  city  of 
New  York,  120,  121  ;  of  Phila- 
delphia, 123,  124;  of  United 
States  cities,  125  ;  concurrence 
in  appointments,  133,  137. 

Almshouses,  directors  of,  in  Boston, 

133- 

Amendment,  of  state  constitutions, 
212  ;  twelfth,  to  Federal  Consti- 
tution, 245  ;  of  Federal  Constitu- 
tion, 270  ;  first  ten,  to  Federal 
Constitution,  278. 

American  Revolution,  cause,  3, 
176. 

Andros,  Sir  Edmund,  viceroy  in  New 
England,  164. 

Annapolis,  early  city  government, 
123. 

Architect,  city,  in  Boston,  134. 

Articles  of  Confederation  adopted, 
220  ;  text,  293. 

Assessors  of  taxes,  selectmen  as, 
20  ;  duties  of  town,  22,  30  ;  in 
Virginia,  64,  68  ;  in  Maryland, 
82  ;  in  Delaware,  83  ;  in  Penn- 
sylvania, 84  J  in  New  York,  85  ; 


in  cities,  125  ;  in  Boston,  133  ; 
in  Brooklyn,  144. 

Assistants,  in  city  of  New  York, 
120,  121  ;  in  colonial  Massachu- 
setts, x6i,  162.  See  also  Coun- 
cil. 

Attorney-general,  state,  1885  fed- 
eral, succession  to  presidency, 
248  ;  duties,  263. 

Auditor,  city,  in  Boston,  134;  in 
Brooklyn,  144,  145  ;  state,  187, 
188  ;   national,  262. 

Australian  ballot  system,  289  ;  re- 
sults, 290  ;  form  of  ballot,  408. 

Baltimore,  Lord,  power  as  proprie- 
tary of  Maryland,  166. 

Beadle,  of  English  township,  39  ;  of 
English  parish,  42. 

Bemis,  Edward,  on  influence  of 
school  districts,  102. 

Bill  t)f  attainder,  forbidden,  269  ; 
nature,  269. 

Bill  of  Rights,  English,  as  a  consti- 
tution, 206  ;  in  the  Federal  Con- 
stitution, 277,  278. 

Block-house  in  New  England  town- 
ship, 18. 

Boardsof  commissioners,  independent, 
in  colonial  Philadelphia,  123  ;  and 
single  commissioners,  138;  state, 
188. 

Borough-reeve  in  England,  1 13. 

Boroughs,  English,  use  of  the  term, 
1 1 1  5  development,  1 1 1  ;  as  a 
hundred,  112;  as  a  county,  113; 
government,  117;  bulwarks  of 
liberty,  11 7-1 19;  represented  in 
first  Parliament,   I18  ;  oligarchi- 


415 


INDEX 


cal  tendencies,  119,  150  ;  tenden- 
cies checked,  120.  See  a/so  City 
government,  London. 

Boston,  outgrows  township  system, 
108  ;  elected  municipal  officers, 
109,  133;  appointed  municipal 
officers,  133-135. 

Bribery,  in  legislatures,  142  n.  ;  pre- 
vention at  elections,  291. 

Bridges,  superintendent  of,  in  Boston, 
I  34.      See  a/so  Highways. 

Brooklyn,  reform  municipal  govern- 
ment, 143-147. 

Browne,  W.  H.,  on  Baltimore's 
powers  as  proprietary,  166,  167. 

Bryce,  James,  on  gerrymandering, 
233  ;  on  nominating  conventions, 

25.3- 
Buildings,   inspector   of,  in   Boston, 

133  5  superintendent  of  public,  in 

Boston,  133. 
By-laws,  of  town-meeting,    35  ;  of 

vestry-meeting,  63. 

Cabinet,  federal  and  English,  258. 

California,  influence  of  school  dis- 
trict, 102. 

Carr,  Dabney,  proposes  intercolonial 
Committees  of  Correspondence, 
218. 

Cemetery,  trustees  of,  in  Boston, 
133. 

Census,  national  bureau,  263. 

Century,  original  meaning,  80. 

Chamberlain,  treasurer  of  city  of 
New  York,  121. 

Channing,  Edward,  on  Virginia  es- 
tates, 61. 

Charity.      See  Poor. 

Charters,  London,  113  ;  colonial, 
154,  161,  164-168,  170;  medi- 
aeval town,  204  ;  Great,  205  ; 
and  constitutions,  205  ;  colonial, 
as  constitutions,  210. 

Chicago,    one-chambered     council. 

Church  congregations,  origin  of  New 
England  townships  in,  15-17. 
See  a/so  Parish. 


Church  wardens  in  England,  duties, 
42  ;  and  selectmen,  42. 

City  government,  representation  ne- 
cessary, 108  5  essentials  in  United 
States  and  England,  IIO;  early 
New  York,  120-122  ;  early 
Philadelphia,  123  ;  pattern  for 
American,  124;  cause  of  weak- 
ness, 124;  modern,  in  United 
States,  125  ;  unsuccessful,  126- 
128  5  rapid  growth,  129  ;  result- 
ing problems,  130-132  ;  increased 
complexity,  132-136,  141  ;  as  a 
business  corporation,  136,  143; 
attempted  reforms,  136  ;  lack  of 
unified  responsibility,  137—139; 
check  on  indebtedness,  139  ;  ef- 
fect of  interference  with  self-gov- 
ernment in,  139-142;  corrup- 
tion, 142  ;  reform,  143— 147  ; 
and  national  party  politics,  146, 
150;  question  of  restricted  suf- 
frage, 147—150.  See  a/so  Bor- 
oughs, London. 

City  council,  in  New  York,  121  ; 
in  United  States  cities,  125  ;  in 
Brooklyn,  143.  See  a/so  Alder- 
men, Common  council. 

Citizenship,  duty  of,  and  historical 
knowledge,  13. 

Civil  service,  national,  284  ;  spoils 
system  invades  state,  285  ;  and 
rotation  in  office,  285  ;  spoils  sys- 
tem in  national,  286  ;  reform, 
287-289. 

Clans,  development  into  townships, 
37-39  ;  grouped  in  tribes,  50. 

Clay,  Henry,  nomination  for  presi- 
dency, 252. 

Clerks,  town,  in  New  England,  21  ; 
parish  and  vestry,  in  England, 
41  ;  parish,  in  Virginia,  63,  64  ; 
county,  in  Virginia,  67  ;  in  South 
Carolina,  77  5  town,  in  New 
York,  85  ;  in  city  of  New  York, 
120-122  ;  in  Boston,  134. 

Close  corporation.  See  Oligarchical 
tendencies. 

Collectors  of  taxes,  in  New  England, 

16 


INDEX 


22 ;  in  Virginia,  68  ;  in  New 
York,  85  ;  in  Boston,  133. 

Colonies.      See  State  government. 

Colorado,  influence  of  school  district, 
loz  ;  woman  suffrage,  103. 

Comitia,  Roman,  37. 

Commerce,  maritime,  parliamentary 
control  of  colonial,  175. 

Committees,  city  council,  126  ;  in- 
efficient for  executive  purposes, 
137-139  ;  executive,  of  Conti- 
nental Congress,  222  ;  of  House 
of  Representatives,  238. 

Committees  of  Correspondence,  ef- 
fect, 178  ;  intercolonial,  218. 

Committee  of  Safety,  purpose,  179. 

Common  of  New  England  township, 
18. 

Common  council,  of  Boston,  109  ; 
of  city  of  London,  115-117;  of 
city  of  New  Yoric,  called  assist- 
ants, 120,  121  ;  of  Philadelphia, 
123,  124  ;  of  United  States  cities, 

Common-driver   of  English   parish, 

41- 

Commonwealth,  use  of  the  term,  7. 

Comptroller,  of  Brooldyn,  143,  145  ; 
state,  188  ;  national,  262. 

Confederation  and  federal  union, 
264.  See  also  Continental  Con- 
gress, Union. 

Congress,  use  of  the  term,  217, 
221  ;  national,  .meeting,  236, 
256  ;  procedure  of  bills,  240  5 
delegated  powers,  264  ;  implied 
powers,  265,  281  ;  expressed  pro- 
hibitions, 268.  See  also  House 
of  Representatives,  Senate. 

Connecticut,  settled  by  church-con- 
gregations, 1 7  ;  colonial  govern- 
ment, 1 64  ;  first  written  constitu- 
tion, 209,  383. 

Constable,  in  New  England  town- 
ships, 21  ;  in  English  parish,  41  ; 
in  Virginia,  67  ;  high,  chie'f  ma- 
gistrate of  English  hundred,  81  ; 
high,  in  Maryland  hundred,  82  ; 
in  New  York  towns,  84  ;  in  city 


of  New  York,  izi  ;  in  Boston, 

134- 

Constitutions,  written,  position  in 
American  system  of  government, 
202,  210  ;  germs,  203  ;  and 
charters,  205  ;  English  BiU  of 
Rights,  206  ;  first  tendency  to- 
ward, in  England,  207  ;  Instru- 
ment of  Government,  207  ;  and 
the  Mayflower  compact,  208  ; 
first,  209  ;  and  the  colonial  char- 
ters, 210  5  over-development  in 
recent  state,  21 1-2 14;  amend- 
ment of  state,  212;  Articles  of 
Confederation,  220.  See  also 
Federal  Constitution, 

Consular  service,  260. 

Continental  Congress,  no  power  to 
tax,  9,  222,  226;  period,  219  ; 
why  ' '  continental, "  219  ;  nature 
and  powers,  221-223,  227  ;  sov- 
ereignty, 223  ;  decline,  224. 

Convention,  defined,  213  ;  Federal, 
226  ;   nominating,  253. 

Coroner,  English  county  officer, 
choice,  53  ;  duties,  54  ;  in  Vir- 
ginia, 68  ;  in  South  Carolina,  77; 
in  Pennsylvania,  84  5  in  city  of 
New  York,  121. 

Corporation,  New  England  township 
as,  21  ;  Massachusetts  county  as, 

57- 
Council,   of  colonial  Virginia,  159; 

of  colonial    Massachusetts,    1 61, 

177;     of    Pennsylvania,      168; 

status    of  colonial,    1 72  ;    power 

during  the  Revolution,  180;  and 

the  state  senate,  181. 

Counsel,  corporation,  in  Boston, 
I  34.      See  also  Attorney-General. 

County,  origin,  50  ;  development  of 
English  nation  from  counties,  51  ; 
ancient  English,  52 ;  after  the 
Norman  conquest,  53-55  ;  why 
so  called,  53  ;  decay  of  English, 
55  ;  beginnings  of,  in  Massachu- 
setts, 5  6  ;  area  of  administration  of 
justice,  56,  66  ;  modern,  in  Mas- 
sachusetts, 57-59  }  as  unit  of  re- 


417 


INDEX 


presentation,  65,  77,  82,  84;  size, 
65,  78,  100  ;  in  Virginia,  66- 
69  ;  modern,  in  South  Carolina, 
111  78  j  l^^y  court  in  Delaware, 
83;  in  Pennsylvania,  84;  super- 
visors in  New  York,  85  ;  origin 
and  shape  of  Western,  90  ;  early 
prevailing  system  in  the  West, 
94,  96  ;  and  township  option  in 
the  West,  97-100  ;  supervisors 
in  Michigan  and  Illinois,  100 ; 
supervisors  and  commissioners, 
100  ;  representative  system,  105  ; 
satisfactory  results,  1075  borough 
as,  113;  city  of  New  York  as, 
121  ;  relation  to  the  state,  191. 

County  commissioners,  in  Massachu- 
setts, 57  ;  in  South  Carolina,  77  ; 
in  Pennsylvania,  84 ;  compared 
with  boards  of  supervisors,  100. 
See  aho  Levy  court.  Supervisors. 

County-lieutenant  in  colonial  Vir- 
ginia, 69.  See  alio  Lord-lieu- 
tenant. 

County  palatine,  in  England,  165  ; 
Maryland  as,  166. 

County  seat,  in  Massachusetts,  56, 
58  ;  in  Virginia,  66  ;  relation  of 
names  of  county  and,  66,  67  n. 

Courts,  leet,  40  ;  baron,  40  ;  shire- 
mote,  52  ;  under  the  Normans, 
53  ;  coroner's,  54  ;  Quarter  Ses- 
sions, 55  ;  General  Sessions  in 
Massachusetts,  5  6  ;  modern  coun- 
ty, in  Massachusetts,  57  ;  county, 
in  Virginia,  66-69  ;  South  Caro- 
lina colonial,  75  ;  circuit,  in  South 
Carolina,  76,  77  ;  hundred,  in 
England,  81  ;  no  township,  112  ; 
borough,  in  England,  112;  com- 
mon pleas  of  city  of  New  York, 
121  ;  municipal,  125,  199  ;  Mas- 
sachusetts General  Court  as  a  ju- 
dicial body,  163;  independence 
of  state,  198  ;  of  justices  of  the 
peace,  198  ;  mayor's,  199  ;  coun- 
ty, 199  ;  superior,  199  ;  state  su- 
preme, 199  j  of  appeals,  199  ; 
choice  and  tenure  of  state  judges. 


199-201  j  of  Appeals  in  Case  of 
Capture,  222  n.  ;  importance  of  a 
federal  judiciary,  271  ;  federal  cir- 
cuit, of  appeals,  271  n.  ;  federal 
supreme,    272  ;     federal    circuit, 

272  ;  federal  district,  272  ;  ap- 
pointment and  tenure  of  federal 
judges,    272  ;   officers  of   federal, 

273  ;  federal  jurisdiction,  273  ; 
uniqueness  and  value  of  federal  su- 
preme, 274.  See  aho  Justice  of 
the  peace. 

Crawford,  W.  H.,  caucus  nominee 
for  presidency,  253  ;  and  rotation 
in  office,  285. 

Cromwell,  Oliver,  dictatorship,  207. 

Crowner.      See  Coroner. 

Curia,  Roman  hundred,  80. 

Dakota,   optional    township  system, 

99- 

Debts,  city,  139. 

Delaware,  hundred  in,  83  ;  levy 
court,  83  ;  settlement,  158  ;  co- 
lonial government,  167. 

Democracy,  in  Greece,  37  ;  clan, 
38  ;  in  early  Massachusetts,  161 ; 
dangers,  186.  See  also  Repre- 
sentation, Town-meeting. 

Departments,  executive,  in  city  gov- 
ernment, independent  in  colonial 
Philadelphia,  123  j  modern  con- 
ditions, 125,  126,  137;  various, 
in  Boston,  133-135  ;  boards  and 
committees  -versus  single  commis- 
sioners, 138;  single  commission- 
ers in  Brooklyn,  144;  state,  188; 
national,  258-263. 

Diplomatic  service,  grades,  260. 

District  attorney,  federal,  273. 

District  of  Columbia,  congressional 
control,  265. 

District  organization  in  South  Caro- 
lina, 76. 

Division  of  powers,  effect  in  city 
government,  136-139;  in  state 
governments,  185-187;  effect  in 
federal  government,  257. 

Durham,  power  of  the  bishop,  165. 

18 


INDEX 


Ealdorman  of  English  county,  51, 
52  J  extinction,  53. 

Ecclesia^  Greek,  37. 

Education.      See  Schools. 

Edvyard  I.,  Model  Parliament,  45  ; 
Confirmatio  Chartarum,  371- 

Election  officers,  in  Pennsylvania, 
84;  in  Boston,  133,  134  ;  board 
of,  in  Brooklyn,  144. 

Electoral  college,  composition,  243  ; 
election,  243,  249,  250  n.  ;  du- 
ties, 244  ;  theory  and  practice, 
248. 

Electoral  commission  of  1877,  247. 

Eminent  domain  defined,  4. 

England,  development  of  the  nation, 
51  ;  extent  of  woman  suffrage, 
103  ;    claim  to  North  America, 

153- 

Entail  in  Virginia,  61. 

Executive,  of  towns,  20,  35,  84  5 
of  Virginia  parish,  63  ;  of  Vir- 
ginia county,  67;  of  cities,  125, 
126,  137-139,  143  ;  of  colonial 
governments,  172  ;  early  state 
councils  as,  180;  separation  from 
legislature,  185-187,  257;  state, 
187;  during  the  Confederation, 
222  ;  federal,  242-263  ;  federal 
departments,  257—263.  See  also 
Governor,  Mayor,  President,  Se- 
lectmen, Sheriff. 

Federal  Constitution,  drafted,  226  ; 
model,  228  ;  compromises  on 
slavery,  229,  277  ;  compromise 
on  representation  in  the  Senate, 
230 ;  amendments,  245,  278  ; 
confined  to  fundamentals,  263  ; 
created  a  federal  union,  264,  271  j 
supreme  law,  270  ;  mode  of 
amending,  270  j  ratification,  276— 
278  ;  opposition,  277  ;   text,  321. 

Fence-viewer,  duties,  25  ;  in  Eng- 
lish parish,  41  ;  in  New  York, 
85  ;  in  Boston,  134. 

Ferries,  directors  of,  in  Boston,  134. 

Field-driver,  duties,  24  ;  in  Boston, 
134- 


Fire  department,  city,  132  ;  com- 
missioners in  Boston,  133;  com- 
missioner in  Brooklyn,  144. 

Firma  burgi,  in  England,  1 1 7  j  in 
city  of  New  York,  121. 

Food,  inspectors  of,  in  Boston,  134. 

France,  claim  to  North  America, 
152;  system  of  local  government, 
192-194. 

Franklin,  Benjamin,  Albany  Plan, 
217. 

Freeman,  E.  A.,  as  a  historian,  12. 

French  Revolution,  cause,  3. 

General  Sessions,  Massachusetts  co- 
lonial court,  duties,  56. 

George  III.,  influence  on  the  Revo- 
lution, 118,  176. 

Georgia,  settlement,  157  ;  early 
government,  169. 

Gerrymandering,  233—235. 

Government,  derivation  of  the  word, 
6  ;  defined,  7  ;  special  use  of  the 
word,  7  ;  and  taxation,  7—10, 
34,  92,  223,  227  ;  delusion  con- 
cerning its  wealth,  33,  148  ; 
United  States  as  a  field  for  study 
of,  1 01  ;  direct  and  indirect,  105— 
107  ;  danger  in  fundamental 
changes,  186.  See  also  Local 
government.  Self-government. 

Governors,  colonial,  159,  161,  164, 
167,  168  ;  kinds  and  positions  at 
time  of  the  Revolution,  1 70, 
171;  relation  of  royal  colonial, 
to  the  legislatures,  173  ;  post- 
revolutionary,  181  ;  veto  power, 
183,  187,  190  ;  present  status, 
187  ;  functions,  188  ;  pardoning 
power,  189. 

Guilds,  origin,  114;  control  of 
English  city  governments,  115, 
117. 

Hamilton,  Alexander,  revenue  mea- 
sures, 279  ;  loose  constructionist, 
281. 

Harbour  masters  in  Boston,  1345 
state  commissioners,  188. 


419 


INDEX 


Hayward,  fence-viewer,  41. 

Health  department,  town,  20  ;  im- 
portance of  city,  132  ;  commis- 
sioners in  Boston,  133  ;  commis- 
sioner in  Brooklyn,  144 ;  state 
boards,  188. 

Henry  I.,  charter  to  London,  113, 
117. 

Highways,  surveyor,  24,  41 ,  84,  85  ; 
control  of,  in  Massachusetts,  57  ; 
in  Virginia,  67  ;  overseer  of,  in 
Maryland,  82  ;  commissioners  in 
Delaware,  83  ;  bad  condition, 
107.      See  also  Streets. 

History,  purpose  of  its  study,  12-14. 

Hitchcock,  Henry,  on  amendment 
of  state  constitutions,  213. 

Hosmer,  J.  K.,  on  Samuel  Adams, 
35  ;   Sir  Harry  Vane,  207  n. 

Hospitals,    directors    of,   in   Boston, 

133- 

House  of  Commons,  power,  10, 
183. 

House  of  Representatives,  pattern, 
228  ;  composition,  228-230  ; 
qualification  of  members,  228, 
238  ;  term,  232  ;  electoral  dis- 
tricts, 232—236  ;  representation  at 
large,  235  ;  residence  of  candi- 
dates, 236  ;  time  of  election, 
236  ;  self-government  and  proce- 
dure, 237  ;  privileges  and  pay  of 
members,  237;  Speaker,  238; 
originates  revenue  bills,  240.  See 
also  Congress. 

Howard,  G.  E.,  on  convenience  of 
public  land  survey,  91. 

Hundred,  origin,  79-81  j  court,  81  ; 
magistrate,  81  ;  decay,  81  }  in 
Maryland,  82  j  in  Delaware,  83  ; 
borough  as,  112. 

Hundredman,  chief  magistrate  of 
hundred,  81. 

Idaho,  mfluence  of  school  district, 
loi  ;   woman  suffrage,  103. 

Illinois,  length,  26  ;  character  of 
settlement,  96,  97  ;  early  county 
system,  96  ;  adoption  of  optional 


township  system,  97  ;  county  su- 
pervisors, 100. 

Immigration,  state  commissioners, 
188. 

Impeachment,  power  in  England, 
239  ;  under  the  Federal  Constitu- 
tion, 239. 

Implied  powers,  congressional,  265  ; 
and  party  politics,  281-283. 

Imprisonment  for  delinquent  taxes, 
22. 

Indiana,  subordinate  township  sys- 
tem, 99. 

Indians,  influence  on  method  of  set- 
tlement in  New  England,  17  ; 
social  condition  at  time  of  the  dis- 
covery, 38  }  bureau  of  Indian 
affairs,  263. 

Ingle,  Edward,  on  Virginia  court- 
day,  71-        _ 

Inspectors,  various  official,  in  Bos- 
ton, 134. 

Instrument  of  Government  as  a  con- 
stitution, 207. 

Insurrection,  suppression,  59,  270. 

Interior,  succession  to  presidency  of 
secretary  of  the,  248  ;  depart- 
ment, 262. 

Internal  improvements  as  a  party 
issue,  283. 

Iowa,  subordinate  township  system, 
100  ;  woman  bond  suffrage,  103. 

Isle  of  Man,  woman  suffrage,  103. 

Jackson,  Andrew,  originates  pocket 
veto,  241  ;  nomination  for  presi- 
dency, 252  J  and  the  spoUs  system, 
286. 

Jameson,   J.    F.,   on    state    powers, 

I97- 
Jefferson,  Thomas,  influences  aboli- 
tion of  entail,  61  ;  on  Virginia 
vestrymen,  64  ;  on  township  gov- 
ernment, 70  ;  suggests  system  of 
public  land  sur\'ey,  87  ;  election 
to  the  presidency,  245  ;  refuses  a 
third  term,  255  ;  establishes  cus- 
tom of  written  message,  256  ; 
strict-constructionist,  281. 


420 


INDEX 


Judges.      See  Courts. 

Jurors,  ancient  use  in  coroner's  in- 
quest, 54. 

Justice  of  the  peace,  origin,  54  ;  du- 
ties, 55  J  in  Massacliusetts,  56, 
58  ;  in  Virginia,  66  ;  London 
aldermen  as,  116;  modern  du- 
ties, 198. 

Kansas,  subordinate  township  system, 
100  ;  municipal  woman  suffrage, 
103. 

Kentucky,  land-grant  complications, 
86  ;  local  school  taxation,  102. 

Kingdom,  defined,  10. 

Land  grants,  in  colonial  Massachu- 
setts, 1 7  ;  in  colonial  Virginia, 
61. 

Legislature,  town,  35,  85,  100; 
of  English  shire,  52;  of  London, 
1 1 5-1 1 7  ;  of  city  of  New  York, 
121  ;  of  United  States  cities, 
125  ;  control  of  cities  by  state, 
139-142;  labour  of  state,  141  ; 
theory  and  practice  of  state,  I42n. ; 
Virginia  House  of  Burgesses,  159  ; 
primary,  in  Massachusetts,  161  ; 
Massachusetts  General  Court, 
162;  other  colonial,  1675  status 
of  colonial,  1 71-17  3  ;  relation  of 
colonial,  to  the  royal  governors, 
173;  power  to  dissolve,  177, 
178  ;  modern  state,  183  ;  reten- 
tion of  bicameral,  184;  separation 
from  the  executive,  185-1875 
state,  and  the  constitutions,  202, 
210  ;  abnormal  constitutional  re- 
strictions on  state,  211— 214.  See 
also  Congress,  House  of  Repre- 
sentatives, Senate,  Veto. 

Levy  court  in  Delaware,  83. 

Lieutenant-governor,  colonial,  161, 
164  ;  state,  182. 

Local  government,  Virginia  and 
New  England  as  types,  60  ;  con- 
trasts in  Virginia  and  New  Eng- 
land systems,  65,  70.  See  aho 
City,  County,  Parish,  Township. 


"Log-rolling"  in  county  govern- 
ment, 100  ;  in  city  government, 
138  ;  in  state  legislatures,  140, 
142  n. 

London,  city  of,  chartered  as  a 
county,  113,  116  J  controlled  by 
the  guilds,  US;  government, 
115-1x7;  extent,  116  n.;  a 
republic,  118. 

London  Company,  jurisdiction,  153  ; 
colony,  I  54  ;  charter,  1 54  ;  dis- 
solved, 155. 

Lord-lieutenant  of  English   county, 

5  S.- 
Louisiana, (state)   extent  of  woman 

suffrage,  103  ;  (territory)  ac- 
quired, 275. 

Low,  Seth,  on  municipal  govern- 
ment, 130,  144. 

Lumber  surveyor,  25. 

Lunacy,  directors  in  Boston,  133; 
state  boards,  188. 

Magna  Charta,  charter  or  constitu- 
tion, 205  ;   text,  352. 

Manor  in  England  and  the  township, 
39  ;   and  the  parish,  40. 

Marcy,  W.  L.,  apothegm  on  the 
spoils  system,  286. 

Mark,  Germanic,  38. 

Market,  clerk  of,  in  city  of  New 
York,  121  ;  superintendent  of, 
in  Boston,  1 34. 

Marshal,  United  States,  273. 

Maryland,  hundred  government,  82  ; 
settlement,  157  ;  charter  and  co- 
lonial government,  165—167. 

Mason  and  Dixon's  line,  origin  and 
significance,  168. 

Massachusetts,  land  grants  to  church 
congregations,  17  ;  establishment 
of  public  schools,  23  ;  assessment 
of  taxes,  26-32  ;  beginnings  of 
counties,  56  ;  organization  of  the 
militia,  56  ;  modern  county  gov- 
ernment, 57-59  ;  beginnings  of 
colonial  government,  160-164; 
changes,  1 64  ;  Regulating  Act, 
1765    government    during     the 


421 


INDEX 


Revolurion,  178-180.  See  also 
New  England,  Township. 

Mayflower  compact,  ao8. 

Mayor,  of  Boston,  109,  133  ;  of  city 
of  London,  115,  116;  of  city 
of  New  York,  120-122;  of 
Philadelphia,  123,  124  ;  of  United 
States  cities,  12.5  ;  power  and 
responsibility,  125,  136,  139, 
143  ;  under  reform  government 
of  Brooklyn,  143-145  ;  court, 
199. 

Michigan,  settled  by  New  England- 
ers,  95  ;  development  of  township 
government,  95 ;  county  super- 
visors, 100. 

Militia,  early  organization  in  Massa- 
chusetts, 56  ;  and  in  Virginia, 
69  ;  hundred  commander  of,  in 
Maryland,  82. 

Mines,  state  commissioners,  188. 

Minister,  in  colonial  V^irginia,  64  ;  in 
colonial  South  Carolina,  75. 

Minnesota,  optional  township  system, 

.99- 

Missouri,  optional  township  system, 

98,  100. 

Moderator  of  New  England  town- 
meeting,  26. 

Mommsen,  Theodor,  as  a  historian, 
12. 

Montana,  influence  of  school  dis- 
trict, 102. 

Morris,  Robert,  the  Financier,  222. 

National  bank  made  a  party  issue, 
283. 

Navy,  succession  to  presidency  of 
secretary  of  the,  248  ;  depart- 
ment, 262. 

Nebraska,  optional  township  system, 

99- 

Nevada,  influence  of  school  district, 
102. 

New  England,  method  of  settiement, 
15—17;  social  condition  of  set- 
tlers, 18  ;  local  government  of, 
contrasted  with  Virginia,  70-73  ; 
settlement,     156;     Confederacy, 


217.  See  also  Township,  and 
states  by  name. 

New  Jersey,  settiement,  158  ;  colo- 
nial government,  169. 

New  York,  local  government,  84 ; 
settlement,  157;  colonial  govern- 
ment, 168. 

New  York  city,  chartered,  120; 
early  government,  120—122  ;  dur- 
ing the  Revolution,  122;  acquires 
complete  self-government,  122  ; 
effect  of  state  legislature  control, 
140-142  ;   Tweed  Ring,   142. 

New  Zealand,  woman  suffrage,  103. 

Newspapers,  political  value,  34. 

North  Carolina,  settlement,  157  ; 
colonial  government,  169. 

Northwest  Territory,  origin,  274 ; 
ordinance  for  government,  275. 

Ohio,  subordinate  township  system, 

99- 

Oligarchical  tendencies,  in  English 
city  governments,  119,  150; 
checked,  120  ;  in  colonial  Vir- 
ginia, 63,  66,  68,  70  ;  in  Phila- 
delphia, 123. 

Ordinance  of  1787,  97,  275. 

Oregon,  (state)  influence  of  school 
district,  102;  (territory)  acquired, 
275. 

Overseers  of  New  York  township, 
85. 

Paper  currency,  states  forbidden  to 
issue,  195,  266;  nature,  266; 
effect  as  a  legal  tender,  267  ;  na- 
tional government  not  forbidden 
to  issue,  268. 

Pardon,  governor's  power,  189; 
president's  power,  255. 

Parish,  origin,  40  ;  and  the  town- 
ship, 40  ;  vestry-meeting,  41  ; 
self-taxation,  41  ;  officers,  41  ; 
powers,  42  ;  origin  of  the  New 
England  township,  42  ;  in  Vir- 
ginia, 63,  64  ;  in  South  Caro- 
lina, 74. 

Parliament,  first  representative,  45, 


412 


INDEX 


Il8  ;    control    of   the    colonies, 
173—177  ;  power  to  dissolve,  177. 
See  also  House  of  Commons. 
Patents,  national  bureau,  264. 

Penn,  William,  proprietary  of  Penn- 
sylvania, 167  J  proposes  a  union, 
217. 

Pennsylvania,  local  government,  84  ; 
settlement,  158;  charter  and  co- 
lonial government,  167  ;  one- 
chambered  legislature,  172. 

Pennsylvania  Municipal  Commission 
on  restricted  municipal  suffrage, 
148. 

Pensions,  national  bureau,  263. 

Philadelphia,  system  of  street  num- 
bering, 89  n.  ;  early*  government  a 
close  corporation,  123  ;  indepen- 
dent boards  of  commissioners, 
123;  reform,  1 24  ;  accumulation 
of  debt,  148. 

Phratry,  social  group  intermediate 
between  clan  and  tribe,  80  ;  In- 
dian, 80.      See  also  Hundred. 

Plantation,  use  of  the  term,  159  n. 

Plymouth  Company,  jurisdiction, 
153  ;  colony,  154  ;  charter,  154; 
surrendered,  155. 

Police  force,  complexity  of  city, 
133  ;  commissioners  in  Boston, 
135  ;  commissioner  in  Brooklyn, 
144.      See  also  Constables. 

Politics,  national,  and  city  govern- 
ment, 146,  150;  formation  of 
parties,  281  ;  main  issue,  282  ; 
phases  of  the  issue,  282 ;  evils 
and  reforms,  29 1 .  See  also  Spoils 
system,  Australian  ballot. 

Poll-tax,  27. 

Poor,  overseers  of,  town,  20,  22, 
84,  85  ;  English  parish,  42  ;  Vir- 
ginia parish,  64;  city,  125  ;  di- 
rectors in  Boston,  133  ;  state 
boards,  188. 

Population,  urban  and  rural,  129. 

Port-reeve  of  London,  113;  be- 
comes mayor,  115. 

Posse  comitatus  in  England,  53  ;  in 
Massachusetts,  59. 


Postmaster-general,  succession  to 
presidency,  248  ;  duties,  263. 

Pound-keeper,  town,  25,  85. 

President,  title  for  chief  executive 
of  early  state  governments,  180; 
federal,  veto  power,  240  ;  head  of 
the  executive  department,  242  j 
why  so  called,  242  ;  election, 
242-247  ^  succession,  247  ;  the- 
ory and  practice  of  electoral  col- 
lege, 248  ;  election  by  minority 
of  popular  vote,  250 ;  reforms 
in  election  of,  considered,  251  j 
nomination  of  candidates,  252— 
254  ;  qualifications,  254  ;  term, 
254  ;  duties  and  powers,  255  ; 
message,  256  ;  as  a  party  leader, 
257  ;  and  the  executive  power  in 
England,  258. 

Primary,  political,  nature  and  duties, 

253- 

Prime  minister  of  England,  power, 
259. 

Printing,  superintendent  of,  in  Bos- 
ton, 134. 

Prisons,  state  commissioners,  188. 

Probate,  court  and  register  in  Massa- 
chusetts, 58  ;  control  of,  in  Vir- 
ginia, 67 ;  judge  of,  in  South 
Carolina,  77. 

Property,  seizure  for  delinquent  taxes, 
22  5  taxation  of  real  estate,  28, 
31;  taxation  of  personal,  28; 
undervaluation  and  concealment 
of  personal,  from  assessment,  3 1 , 
32. 

Proprietary  government  in  America, 
165-169. 

Provincial  Congress  of  Massachu- 
setts, 179. 

Public  documents,  national  bureau, 
263.      See  also  Records. 

Public  lands,  survey,  86—89 ;  di- 
visions, 89;  subdivisions,  91; 
sale,  92 ;  reservations  for  public 
schools,  92  ;   bureau,  263. 

Public  library,  parochial,  in  South 
Carolina,  75  ;  trustees  of,  in  Bos- 
ton, 133. 


423 


INDEX 


Quarter  Sessions  in  England,  55  5 
equivalent  in  Virginia,  66. 

Quincy,Josiah,  on  town  meetings  In 
Boston,  108. 

Railroads,  state  commissioners,  188. 

Ramage,  B.  J.,  on  South  Carolina 
back  country,  75. 

Reade,  Charles,  story  from  Cloister 
and  the  Hearth,  1 . 

Real  estate,  taxation,  28,  31. 

Recorder  of  city  of  New  York, 
120-122  ;  of  Philadelphia,  123, 
124. 

Records,  keepers  of,  town,  21  ; 
county,  58,  67;  city,  133.  See 
also  Public  documents. 

Reeve  of  English  township,  39. 

Referendum,  Wilson  on,  214. 

Regulating  Act  for  Massachusetts, 
significance,  176. 

"Regulators"  in  South  Carolina, 
76. 

Representation,  as  safeguard  of  self- 
government,  44,  46-48  ;  in  shire- 
motes,  44,  52  ;  first  Parliament, 
45  ;  township  as  unit,  45-48  ;  in 
Virginia  parish,  63  ;  county  as 
unit,  65,  77,  82,  84  ;  apportion- 
ment in  South  Carolina,  75-77  5 
in  the  hundred  court,  81  ;  in 
Delaware  levy  court,  8  3  ;  in  boards 
of  supervisors,  85,  100  ;  neces- 
sary in  county  system,  105,  106  ; 
necessary  in  city  government,  108  ; 
in  English  boroughs,  113,  115  ; 
in  city  of  New  York,  121  ;  in 
United  States  cities,  125  ;  in  the 
colonies,  159,  162,  167,  171, 
172;  in  the  states,  181,  183  ; 
and  the  Continental  Congress, 
227 ;  and  taxation,  227,  229  ; 
in  the  House  of  Representatives, 
228-230;  in  the  Senate,  230, 
231.  See  also  Oligarchical  ten- 
dencies. 

Rhode  Island,  colonial  and  early  state 
government,  164. 

Roads.     See  Highways,  Streets. 


Robbery  and  taxadon,  10. 

Rotation  in  office,  and  democratic 
principles,  36 ;  introduction  into 
national  civil  service,  285. 

Russell,  Benjamin,  and  the  gerry- 
mander, 235. 

Russia,  local  self-government,  46  ; 
centralization,  47. 

San  Francisco,  one-chambered  coun- 
cil, 125. 

Schools,  public,  established  in  Massa- 
chusetts, 23  ;  duties  of  township 
committee,  23  ;  appointment  of 
teachers  in  New  England  town- 
ship, 24  5  superintendent,  24  ; 
established  in  South  Carolina,  75  ; 
commission  in  South  Carolina, 
77 ;  districts  as  step  toward  town- 
ship system,  78,  93,  96,  loi  — 
103  ;  sections  in  the  public  lands 
and  their  influence,  92,  93  ;  dis- 
tricts and  woman  suffrage,  103  ; 
committee  of  city  of  Boston,  134; 
state  superintendent  and  boards, 
188  ;  national  bureau  of  educa- 
tion, 263. 

Section,  division  of  public-land  town- 
ship, 91  ;   school,  92. 

Selectmen  of  township,  duties,  20  ; 
as  the  government,  21  ;  power 
and  responsibility,  36  ;  and  English 
churchwardens,  42  ;  and  Virginia 
vestrymen,  63  ;  equivalent  in 
New  York,  84. 

Self-government,  aim  of  New  Eng- 
land settlers,  19,  120  ;  in  English 
manor,  39  ;  in  English  parish, 
41  ;  township,  43,  46  ;  Russian 
local,  46  5  preservation  of  local, 
in  United  States,  191,  194;  lack 
of  local,  in  France,  192—194  ; 
effect  of  interference  with  city, 
139-142.  See  also  Oligarchical 
tendencies,  Representation. 

Senate,  state,  origin,  181  ;  status, 
182-184;  federal,  compromise  in 
composition,  230,  231  ;  election 
of  senators,  231  ;  term  of  senators, 


424 


INDEX 


aji  5  qualifications  of  senators, 
■  234 ;  self-government  and  proce- 
dure, 237  ;  privileges  and  pay  of 
senators,  237  ;  presiding  officer, 
238,  247  ;  participation  in  treaties 
and  appointments,  255.  See  aho 
Congress. 

Sergeant-at-arms  of  city  of  Nev»r 
York,  121. 

Servants,  indentured,  in  Virginia, 
62. 

Sewers,  superintendent  of,  in  Boston, 

134- 

Sexton  of  Virginia  parish,  64. 

Sheriff,  of  ancient  English  shire,  52  ; 
after  the  Norman  Conquest,  53  ; 
duties,  53  ;  in  Massachusetts,  59  ; 
in  Virginia,  68  ;  in  South  Caro- 
lina, 75-77 ;  in  Pennsylvania, 
84  ;  of  city  of  London,  113,117; 
of  city  of  New  York,  121,  122. 

Ship  of  state,  use  of  the  term,  7. 

Shire.      See  County. 

Shire-mote,  44,  52  ;  as  a  court  of 
justice,  52. 

Simon  de  Montfort,  his  Parliament, 
45  ;  and  the  cities,  118. 

Sinking  fund  commissioners  in  Bos- 
ton, 133. 

Slavery  in  Virginia,  61. 

Social  conditions,  in  colonial  New 
England,  1 8  ;  in  colonial  Virginia, 
62. 

Social  Contract,  theory,  203. 

Solicitor,  city,  in  Boston,  134;  na- 
tional, 263. 

South,  tendency  toward  township 
system,  102. 

South  Australia,  woman  suffrage, 
103. 

South  Carolina,  dual  local  govern- 
ment, 74—77  ;  local  government 
since  the  Civil  War,  77  ;  coun- 
ties much  too  large,  78  ;  settle- 
ment, 157  ;  colonial  government, 
169. 

Sovereignty,  and  taxation,  8-10, 
226  ;  where  invested  in  Ameri- 
can government,  191,  195-198, 


220,  264,  270,  271  ;  of  the 
Continental  Congress,  223,  226. 

Spain,  claim  to  America,  152. 

Speaker,  origin  of  the  title,  238  ; 
duties  and  power,  239. 

Spoils  system,  state  origin,  285  ; 
nature  and  development,  286, 
287  ;  attempt  to  suppress,  287— 
289. 

Stamp  Act  Congress,  218. 

State  government,  organization  of 
the  different  colonial,  I  59-1 70; 
forms  of,  at  beginning  of  Revo- 
lution, 1 70 ;  based  on  English 
model,  173,  182,  216;  relation 
of  colonial,  to  Parliament,  173— 
177;  transitory  stage  during  the 
Revolution,  1 78-1 81  5  further 
reorganization,  1 81-183;  present 
framework,  185-190  ;  division 
of  powers,  185-187;  preserva- 
tion of  local  self-government,  1 9 1 ; 
sovereignty,  191,  220  ;  powers  for- 
bidden to,  and  retained  by,  under 
the  Federal  Constitution,  195- 
198,  266,  278  ;  independence  of 
the  courts,  198  ;  grades  of  courts, 
198  ;  status  of  judges,  198-201  ; 
authority  of  state  constitution, 
202,  210;  overdevelopment  of 
the  constitution,  21 1— 214  ;  repre- 
sented in  the  Federal  Senate,  230, 
231  ;  interrelationship  under  the 
Federal  Constitution,  269  ;  federal 
guarantee,  270 ;  subordinate  to 
Federal  Constitution,  270  ;  ad- 
mission of  new,  to  the  Union, 
274;  and  the  spoils  system,  285. 

State,  secretary  of,  187,188;  federal, 
succession  to  presidency,  248  ; 
duties,  259. 

Street  lights,  independent  commis- 
sion for,  in  Philadelphia,  123; 
superintendent  of,  in  Boston,  1 34. 

Streets,  bad  condition  of  city,  107  ; 
control  of,  in  colonial  Philadelphia, 
123  ;  city  commissioners,  125  ; 
commissioners  and  superintendents 
of  Boston,  133,  134. 


425 


INDEX 


Suffrage,  woman,  103  ;  why  gen- 
erally restricted  to  men,  103  5 
question  of  restricted  municipal, 
1^7—1 50 ;  modern  conditions, 
1 84 ;  state  control  of  national, 
Z28. 

Supervisors,  county,  in  New  York, 
85  ;  in  Michigan  and  Illinois, 
100  5  compared  with  county  com- 
missioners, 100.  See  also  County 
commissioners.  Levy  court. 

Surveyor,  city,  in  Boston,  134.  See 
also  Highways. 

Tariff,  familiarity,  280  ;  early  state, 
280  ;  national,  280  ;  as  a  party 
issue,  282,  283. 

Taxation,  historical  importance,  2  ; 
defined,  3-6  ;  essential  to  govern- 
ment, 7,  34,  92  ;  criterion  of 
government,  8—10,  34,  223, 
227  ;  proper  and  improper  use  of 
power,  10;  in  New  England 
townships,  20,  22,  26  ;  seizure 
of  property  for  delinquency,  22  ; 
imprisonment  for  delinquency,  22  ; 
method  in  Massachusetts,  26  ; 
kinds  and  exemptions,  27-29  ; 
assessment,  29  ;  lists,  30  ;  under- 
valuation of  property  for,  31,  32  ; 
rate,  31;  burden,  32;  in  Eng- 
lish parish,  41  ;  in  Virginia  par- 
ish, 64 ;  in  Virginia  county,  68  ; 
and  suffrage,  74,  103,  147-150, 
184;  in  Maryland  hundred,  82  ; 
by  levy  court  in  Delaware,  83  ; 
in  New  York  townships,  85; 
board  of  county  supervisors  in 
New  York,  85  ;  board  of  esti- 
mate in  Brooklyn,  145  ;  origin 
in  lower  house  of  legislature,  167, 
171,  240 ;  power  not  possessed 
by  Continental  Congress,  222, 
226  5  and  representation,  227, 
229  ;  fear  of  federal,  279  ;  fed- 
eral excise,  279,  281  ;  federal 
imposts,  280  ;  other  federal  taxes, 
280,  281  n.  See  a/so  Assessors, 
Collectors. 


Taylor,  Hannis,  on  government  of 
city  of  London,  114. 

Tennessee,  local  school  taxation, 
102. 

Territory,  origin  of  national,  274  ; 
growth,  275  ;   government,  276. 

Tithing-man  of  English  township, 
39  ;  of  English  parish,  41  n.  j  in 
New  England,  41  n. 

Tobacco,  currency  in  Virginia,  64, 
68  ;  viewer  in  Maryland  hun- 
dred, 82. 

Town,  origin  of  the  term,  38  ;  and 
city,  109-111.  See  also  Town- 
meeting,  Township. 

Town-meeting,  time  and  composi- 
tion, 19  ;  functions,  20,  25,  35  ; 
calling  of,  26  ;  procedure,  26  ; 
as  a  political  training-school,  3  3  ; 
34,  72,  106  ;  importance  during 
the  pre-Revolutionary  days,  35  ; 
in  England,  39  ;  and  the  English 
vestry  meeting,  41  ;  and  the 
court-baron,  40  ;  and  the  Virginia 
court-day,  71  ;  in  New  York, 
84 ;  in  Michigan,  95  ;  in  the 
western  townships,  99,  1 00.  See 
also  Township. 

Township,  oldest  form  of  govern- 
ment, 15  ;  origin,  15-17,  42  ; 
elements,  18  ;  self-government, 
19  ;  officers,  20-25  ;  legal  cor- 
poration, 21  ;  elected  officers,  25  ; 
power  and  responsibility  of  officers, 
35  ;  and  rotation  in  office,  36  ; 
in  Greece  and  Rome,  37;  de- 
velopment from  clan,  37-39  ; 
English,  39;  and  the  manor,  39, 
40  ;  and  the  parish,  40  ;  as  unit 
of  representation  and  assessment, 
45-48  ;  and  the  Russian  village- 
community,  46  5  lacking  in  Vir- 
ginia, 61,  63,  65  ;  and  the  Vir- 
ginia parish,  63,  65  ;  Jefferson 
on,  70  ;  tendency  toward,  in  the 
South,  78,  102  ;  and  the  Mary- 
land hundred,  82;  in  Pennsyl- 
vania, 84  ;  in  New  York,  84  ; 
use  of  term,    in    public-land  sur- 


426 


INDEX 


vey,  8  7  ;  origin  and  size  of  west- 
ern, 87;  division  and  subdivision 
of  land  survey,  91  ;  influence  of 
school  section  in  development  of 
township  government  in  the  West, 
93  ;  development  of,  in  Michigan, 
95  ;  as  an  optional  system  in  the 
West,  99  ;  grades  of,  in  the  West, 
99  ;  democracy,  105  ;  advantages, 
106;  limitations,  106;  relation 
to  the  state,  191.  See  also  Town- 
meeting. 

Treasurer,  town,  21  ;  county,  57, 
83,  145  ;  sheriff  as  county,  68  ; 
dual  state,  in  South  Carolina,  77  ; 
city,  121,  134;  state,  187,  188. 
See  also  Treasury. 

Treasury,  secretary  of  the,  succession 
to  presidency,  248  ;  duties,  261  ; 
qualifications,  262. 

Tribe,  group  of  clans,  50  ;  develop- 
ment into  county,  50. 

Tun,  Germanic,  38. 

Tungemot,  39. 

Tweed  Ring,  142. 

Undertakers,    official,    in     Boston, 

134- 

Union,  usual  cause,  216  ;  New  Eng- 
land Confederacy,  217;  Penn's 
proposal,  217;  Albany  Plan,  217; 
Stamp  Act  Congress,  218;  in- 
tercolonial Committees  of  Cor- 
respondence, 218  ;  Continental 
Congress,  219-225  ;  weakened 
sentiment,  225  ;  fear  of  strong, 
226  ;  confederation  and  federal, 
264 ;  under  the  Constitution, 
264,  271. 

United  States,  zones  of  settlement, 
86,  156-159  ;  as  a  field  for  study 
of  government,  loi  ;  powers  un- 
der the  Constitution,  195  ;  ex- 
pressed prohibitions  in  the  Con- 
stitution, 268,  269.  See  also 
Congress,  Courts,  Federal  Consti- 
tution, President,  State  govern- 
ment, Territory. 

Utah,  woman  suffrage,  103. 


Vane,  Sir  Henry,  proposes  a  consti- 
tutional convention,  207. 

Vestry,  meeting  in  English  parish, 
41  ;  clerk,  41  ;  in  Virginia  par- 
ish, 63,  64  ;  vestrymen  in  South 
Carolina,  74. 

Veto,  mayor's,  126,  139;  gov- 
ernor's, 183,  187;  president's, 
240  ;  "  pocket,"  241  ;  value, 
241. 

Vice-president,  duties,  238,  247; 
election,  244-246;  qualifications, 
254. 

Village,  New  England,  l8  ;  and 
town,  no. 

Virginia,  method  of  settlement,  60  ; 
absence  of  towns,  61  ;  demand 
for  cheap  labor,  61  ;  social  con- 
ditions, 62  5  parish  government, 
63,  64  ;  oligarchical  tendencies 
in  local  government,  63,  66,  68, 
70  ;  county  unit  of  representation, 
65  ;  why  no  township  system, 
65  ;  county  government,  65-69  ; 
local  government  compared  with 
New  England,  70-73  ;  local  gov- 
ernment developed  leaders,  72  ; 
local  school  taxation,  102  ;  set- 
tlement, 1 54  ;  colonial  govern- 
ment, 159. 

War  department,  262. 

War  governors,  189. 

War,  secretary  of,  succession  to  presi- 
dency, 248. 

Wards,  of  English  borough  as  town- 
ships, 113;  as  hundreds,  114; 
representation,  116;  first,  of  city 
of  New  York,  120. 

Washington,  George,  unanimous 
election  to  presidency,  249  ;  re- 
fuses a  third  term,  255. 

Washington,  D.  C,  street  arrange- 
ment, 90  n. 

Washington  (state),  influence  of 
school  district,  102. 

Water  department,  complexity  of 
city,  132  ;  officers  of,  in  Boston, 
i33>  134- 


427 


INDEX 


Waywarden,  surveyor  of  highways, 

Weighers  and  measurers,  various 
town,  25  ;  in  Boston,  I  34. 

Weights  and  measures,  sealer,  town, 
25  ;  in  city  of  New  York,  121  ; 
in  Boston,  134. 

West,  zones  of  settlement,  86,  158  ; 
form  of  townships  and  counties, 
87,  90  ;  influence  of  school  sec- 
tions and  districts,  92-94,  loi  ; 
early  prevalence  of  county  system, 
94,  96  ;  optional  township  sys- 
tem, 97-99.  See  also  Public 
lands,  Territory. 


West  Virginia,  local  school  taxation, 

102. 

Whiskey  Insurrection,  279. 

'*  White  trash  "  in  Virginia,  62. 

Wilson,  Woodrow,  on  powers  of  the 
state,  196;  on  the  referendum, 
214;  on  the  federal  courts,  272- 
274. 

Winsor,  Justin,  on  origin  of  the 
gerrymander,  235. 

Wood,  measurer,  town,  25  ;  in 
Boston,  134. 

Wyoming,  influence  of  school  dis- 
trict, 102  J  woman  suffrage,  103. 


THE    END 


EUctrotyped  and  printed  by  H.  O.  Houghton  <S7»  Co. 
Cambridge,  Mass.,  U.  S,  A. 


.^ 


